1

The summit of Mount Kilimanjaro is 19,341 feet above sea level and I somehow got the bug to climb it. What am I thinking?  “Superlatives” – maybe. The most remote inhabited island on the planet; the southern most city in the world – that seems always to have been a factor in my choice of places to visit. That I could climb to the top of the highest free-standing mountain in the world is what its all about. Kilimanjaro is in the north of Tanzania, near the Kenyan boarder. I have never been to that part of the world and there is a lot I would like to see and photograph there.

There is a great deal of planning required for this one – more than for any trip I have taken. When is the best time to do it? How do you train for it? How much does it cost? Where am I going to get the money? What route to take? What do I carry in my pack? What gear do I need? How much camera equipment can I take on the trip and how do I keep it powered on the mountain?

 

2

When I think about the enormity of a trip like this, getting it all right seems a stretch. It’s a matter of “Steps” – isn’t it? – after all. A series of steps must be taken to get to the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro, and it is a matter of steps, about 130,000 of them (up!) to the summit.

I think about it, and I wonder about the challenge of it all. I can handle one step – I know that. I’m going to start there, and I will finish with one step, and I hope to finish this blog with news and details of it.

But first: