Kilimanjaro: Day 2

June 4th, Thursday!

Up at dawn, and time to take a bath sized handy wipe bath and change into fresh clothes. It was easiest to sleep in what I wore the day before. When it came time to get that sleeping bag back into the stuff sack, it was like a comedy act. Believe you me, I did it, but not without a fight!

The crew was getting ready for the day, preparing my breakfast and lunch pack. For breakfast, I had toast with some shredded cheese like Parmesan, sliced tomatoes, cucumbers and an egg omelet. I made a sandwich out of it actually and drank my tea. Not to be forgotten, a big plate of fruit. Geez.

Here's a picture of me with the crew after breakfast:

...from left to right: Baboo, Juma, me, Abus, Johnny, and Willie. Godfrey took this photo.

Soon we were off and it was a long steep rocky slog to nearly the top of an outcrop for lunch at 12,232 ft. Along the way, we saw more everlastings and the giant heathers.

We even saw the first Groundsels (Senecios):
Here's me with Meru in the background:
...and off in the other direction is Uhuru, but you can't really see it because it's beyond and above what your camera can capture from this point:

Check out Godrey, and our porters climbing up the hill:
Once we reached the lunch spot, there was one group there already and the ravens were everywhere hoping for some scraps. These rather large birds are black with a white spot on their necks.

They have interesting beaks that can crush bones. They're also loud, smart, and not really afraid to come right up to you and steal your lunch. There really weren't many animals to see on the trek, other than birds. I did happen to snap a picture of this cute little mouse:

On the way from there to camp, I put on my gators courtesy of Drew, and snapped some pictures of the celebrated groundsels, red hot pockers, and some lobelias that were perfectly round and pre-bloom.

After passing a small (ice cold) waterfall and climbing just a little higher, we crested a ridge and could see the camp below.

When we arrived, I set up my bed and changed my shoes and my hat from floppy safari hat to my wool cap. Warm water soon arrived and then it was time for a snack of sweetened popcorn and roasted peanuts (along with tea of course).

I'm feeling fine, but my blood oxygen level has dropped quite a bit. Tomorrow may be time for Diamox. After our snack, (and me handing out coconut candies to everyone) Godfrey, Willie, and I walked thirty minutes to Shira Camp, stopping to take photos in a nearby cave. This was our typical "climb high, sleep low" acclimatization walk.

At the Shira Camp, I signed the book and used the fancy restrooms. Still pit, but with a raised seat! Here we are and then me signing the book and a super smiley photo of Godfrey with his friend the ranger:
There was also a weather station at this camp:
On the way back, we took more photos and sang some songs; well, they sang and promised to teach me a song. The moon was easy to see in the sky and it was nearly full.
We also saw this giant bug on a rock.
Surprisingly, I hardly ever saw an insect anywhere.

Back to camp, it's almost time for dinner. Thankfully enough time to write up the events of the day.

First course, creamy cucumber soup and chapatis (my favorite), although these are more like crepes and even a little sweet. I'm discovering now that if I eat slowly, maybe they won't fill my bowl again. After soup, it was beef (or some other red meat) stew, rice, and sliced mangos (embe).

I went to the bathroom for the third time since reaching the camp and soon it's off to bed with bottles of hot water to keep me warm. It's much colder out, and the restroom is further. It's going to be an interesting night. I can only hope I sleep through it because I really don't want to venture out in the middle of the night to use the pit toilet if I can avoid it.