Mt. Kenya!

It seems I’ve all but abandoned the blog, but I’m determined to get back to it. Over the last three months there’s been a lot going on, but I’m actually starting to have some success stories. Even though I’ve been extremely busy it’s a shame not to write about some of the positive things finally happening after all my complaining over the past 21 months. (Hard to believe it’s been that long!)

So coming soon: a summary of my life in Kenya since February. I’d do that now, but I am still pumped up about one of the best hikes of my life on the slopes of Mt. Kenya, and since it’s fresh on my mind that’s the topic of the day:

I’ve wanted to take on Mt. Kenya since arriving in country. It’s the tallest mountain in Kenya and the second tallest in Africa, topping out at over 17,000ft. Africa’s tallest mountain, Mt. Kilimanjaro, is not far away, but it costs five times as much and is a huge tourist destination. Friends that have climbed both complain that Kilimanjaro consists of a Disney World line all the way to the top and tell me that the scenery and experience of Mt. Kenya is much better.

Anyway, Mt. Kenya’s been on my mind for awhile, but I’ve never managed to find the time to take it on. With this being the rainy season, I started to worry it wasn’t going to happen, so I finally decided to take my chances and give it a shot anyway. I called up my Peace Corps friend Adrienne and then Dero, a photographer from the States working a six-month stint at the Brittany James orphanage. Dero is very much into the hiking and outdoors and was an excellent hiking companion, and Adrienne is always up for an outdoors adventure.

I began the journey with a trip to Migori to meet Dero at the orphanage, where I finally had an appointment to distribute wheelchairs (blog post coming soon). Short on vacation time and swamped with work, I decided the best way to fit everything in would be the night bus from Migori to Nakuru after the wheelchairs were handed out. Adrienne would meet us in Nakuru, and we would all leave bright and early for Nanyuki to begin the hike.

The night bus, as always, was terrible. Every time I would almost get some sleep the bus would sail over another bump, lifting me off the seat and leaving me sleep-deprived and ill-tempered. The bus was supposed to arrive in Nakuru at 2am, where we would take a taxi to Adrienne’s hotel room and crash on her floor until the first matatu left for Nanyuki in the morning. As we approached the outskirts of Nakuru, I was anxiously awaiting at least a few hours of sleep, and the bus driver decided to pass a slow moving vehicle in front of us. Kenyan drivers often find it unacceptable to wait for the oncoming traffic to pass before overtaking (although, ironically, there’s never an issue with arriving two hours late for a meeting) so the bus had to immediately veer back over to avoid a collision. What the driver didn’t realize was that a broken down truck without any marker lights was on the road just in front of the vehicle it passed. With no option but to crash into the truck, the driver slammed on the brakes just in time to smash up the front end of the bus. The bus was totaled but luckily there were not any injuries. The moral of the story: the road between Kisumu and Nairobi is terrible. I’m sticking with the train on this route or day travel from this point forward.

We stood outside the crashed bus with all the other sleepy passengers for about an hour. Finally another bus came by to pick us up and take us into town, and we grabbed a cab to arrive at the comfort of Adrienne’s hotel room floor by 3:30am. Our 6am alarm was ignored, and we left for Nanyuki with barely enough time remaining to arrive that day. The guide met us at the matatu stage, walked with us to his office, and of course began raising the prices on everything I had been quoted on the phone. I’m very adapted to Kenyan bargaining tactics now, so I told the guy we didn’t have time for nonsense and began to walk away. This approach works nine times out of ten, and suddenly what began as a $110 ride from the park exit to the nearest town was thrown in for free and an additional $75 per person was knocked off the price. An all-inclusive package, including 3 porters, a cook, a guide, park fees, transport, and all meals and accommodation worked out to $200. I know it sounds cushy, but I’m not too proud to say I wanted to enjoy myself along the way. Having everything taken care of and someone else carrying my heavy bag went a long way towards making that happen.

We began the trail on what is called the Simeron route. To get there, we piled into a private matatu filled with 15 people. I found it a bit strange, since there were only eight of us hiking, but I assumed the additional passengers were just hitching a free ride. However, on the mountain it had been raining most of the day, and I soon realized what the extra people were for. The road was thick with mud and the rear-wheel drive matatu kept sliding sideways and off the road, where it would inevitably get stuck. That’s when all those extra people came in handy. For a solid five miles we moved along at a snail’s pace with the engine revved high and tires throwing mud everywhere. 10 guys were surrounding the matatu and basically lifting it off the ground to keep it moving forward. Gotta love this county.

We arrived at the park gate around 5pm with a 10km hike ahead of us to get to the first cabin. Our timing was perfect and we made it to the cabin just as the last bit of daylight faded away. There was nothing spectacular about the first day of hiking, as we followed a dirt road build to carry scientists to a nearby research station. The scenery consisted of a sparse forest and the occasional gazelle or bush buck (which surprisingly makes a loud barking sound just like a dog). The climb was a bit difficult the first day as we began to acclimate to the altitude, and it got plenty cold at the 11,000 ft. elevation cabin.

The following day was much better, as the road ended and the real hiking began. The day started off nice, with plenty of sunshine. It was remarkable how quickly I went from three layers of clothing and a jacket to shorts and a t-shirt as the day progressed. The cook’s food was exceptional considering the circumstances, and the porters had no problem keeping up, despite the huge bags of gear and plenty of cigarettes. As we continued the to climb higher the landscape changed dramatically. We rose above the tree line to barren plains of short grass, which I assumed would continue until the snowy peak, but as we continued to climb things got weird. The landscape morphed into an alien landscape, with five-foot high plants covered in fur and huge cabbage-like flowers sitting atop what appeared to be tree stumps. I read up on this, and the fertile volcanic soils, combined with the equatorial alpine climate, creates a landscape unlike anywhere else in the world. Descriptions alone won’t do it justice so I will try and post some pics.

I was also amazed at the deep jagged valleys cut into the mountain. Far below us clouds began to gather as it rained in the forest we had passed the day before. Then, slowly, a mist began to creep in that stole our spectacular view and left us with little visibility. Once the clouds settled in, the temperature fell immediately. My shorts and t-shirt suddenly became very inadequate and once again I was bundled up in as many layers as I could throw on. My rain gear proved useful though, as the mist and clouds soon became freezing rain, which then turned into hailstones. The hailstones fell faster and faster until eventually the trail and surrounding landscape were completely blanketed with small white spheres of ice. As we continued to climb, by now thoroughly frozen, the hailstones began to subside and snow took their place. Snow on the equator! I couldn't believe it.

We arrived at the next cabin in the late afternoon, and I was all too happy to change clothes and get out of the weather. The altitude here was 14,000ft, with around 2,500ft to go to reach our summit the following morning. By “following morning” I was surprised to learn that meant we left at 2:30am. As I had learned, the mountain is usually clear in the mornings, but by early afternoon the clouds have settled in soon to be followed by rain, sleet, ice, or snow.

2:30am didn’t take too long to arrive. I was wearing everything I owned, while bundled up in a winter sleeping bag, and still felt cold. Getting out of bed wasn’t easy. I could not believe how cold it was. I’m told that the temperature averages around 10°F and after spending more than two years without experiencing sub-freezing temperatures it was a bit of a shock to my system. I was groggy and tired and still trying to work up the enthusiasm for the climb ahead. Meanwhile, the porters and our guide had brought a bottle or rum with them. We went to bed at eight so we could be rested for the summit, while the guide and porters had stayed up the entire night drinking, smoking, and playing cards. Unbelievably, they seemed fresh and ready to continue the climb the following morning.

Once I got moving things improved, and the remaining elevation gain was the toughest climbing of the trip. I was surprised how quickly I heated up and how many layers I had to strip off just to keep from roasting despite the freezing temperatures. As we continued to climb a dim horizon of light started to appear to the East, and we reached the summit just as the sun began to rise in the distance.

We were blessed with clear weather and a phenomenal view; it was exhilarating to be at the top of the world. The landscape below was so diverse, from plains in the distance to rugged valleys to boulder fields and glaciers. I celebrated by having my picture taken at the summit marker, while our guide celebrated by smoking a cigarette. I haven’t mentioned how difficult it was to breathe up there, but just looking at the guy smoking made me sick to my stomach.

The return trip was a different direction on a route called Chigoria, which was even more spectacular then the Sirimon route. There were forests of crazy plants, panoramic views, a huge boulder field (that was miserable to navigate through), and a beautiful alpine lake feeding a waterfall that in turn fed a stream cutting through a deep canyon.

We were able to enjoy the scenery until around noon, when the rain finally caught up with us. The remaining hike was a bit miserable, with plenty of mud and rain leaving us completely soaked through. When we arrived at the park gates, we had been hiking for over 14 hours and more than 20 miles, but in good spirits for having taken on and successfully summited Mt. Kenya.

We took a matatu back to Nairobi, and went out to an Ethiopian restaurant where I tried raw meet soaked in spiced butter on the suggestion of an Ethiopian friend. It was edible but not great, and my stomach rewarded me with a nasty bug for three days afterwards. Oh well, you live and you learn. My trip concluded with a train ride back to site was only 2 hours late and much better then the night bus, and now that I’m back I’m gearing up for a trip to the coast in a week. I’m determined to get back into keeping up with my adventures and will write more soon.