Climbing Africa's highest mountain, Tanzania's Mount Kilimanjaro

The summit Kilimanjaro, Africa's highest mountain, from Karanga Camp, the stopping point for the fourth night of the climb. 

Climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro at Age 66: FITNESS MATTERS!

What does it take to stand atop Africa's highest mountain in your seventh decade on the planet?  

Travel Boldly asked Sally McKinney to interview a man that knows. Billy Giles has climbed Tanzania's Mount Kilimanjaro, or "Kili" as it affectionately known, three times since he topped 60 years of age. Billy's feats certainly give me hope of summiting at least one of Seven Summits during my seventh decade. Read Billy's interview and get yourself motivated for your own Kilimanjaro climbing adventure. 

                                                                       Jerome Shaw Publisher of Travel Boldly

Sally's other inspiring stories of travel for Travel Boldly

• After Slow Travel in Tanzania - We Went Poco y Poco in Peru. You are never too old to travel.
• Travel Adventures in the Galápagos Islands

Questions by Sally McKinney   Answers by Billy Giles

In July, 2014, Billy Giles climbed Africa’s highest mountain. For the third time.

While Billy walked uphill for days to reach 19, 385 feet, Sally took it easy and read: “Kilimanjaro: A Photographic Journey to the Roof of Africa”.

After Billy (BEG) came home to Indiana, he answered Sally’s (SMK) many questions:

All photos by Billy Giles

Map of climbing Kilimanjaro on the Machame Route, courtesy

of Machame.com

SMK   You’ve done this twice before. What makes climbing Kili so special?
BEG   The first time, it was because I thought it was a real adventure and something I could possibly do. It was a reason to go somewhere that was not like anywhere I’d ever been. I could also go with someone from that place. After I went once, I wanted to go back to see more and to see friends I’d made in Tanzania. When friends and family have approached me about climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro, I’ve jumped at the chance. And, at 19,385 feet, Mt. Kilimanjaro is the highest point in Africa.

SMK   Which route did you take?
BEG   I took the Machame route for all thee climbs. Marangu route uses huts for sleeping. For Machame, the porters bring tents, so you don’t have to reserve hut space. The weather is said to be better and more scenic on Machame. The Machame route is less direct, so there’s more time to acclimate to altitude, therefore a greater success rate.

Mt. Meru can be seen in the distance to the west from Shira 

camp. It is the second highest mountain in Tanzania at just 

under 15,000 feet. The Shira Cathedral, one of the three 

volcanoes that make up Kilimanjaro, is on the right.

SMK How many miles (kilometers) is your route up-and-down Kili?
BEG   One source says from Machame Gate up to Uhuru summit and down to Mweka Gate is 37 miles (62 kilometers). But I have found that different sources give different distances for the trails and different altitudes for the camps on Mt. Kilimanjaro.

SMK   You spent six nights sleeping in tents on the mountain. Tell me more. . .
BEG   Walter (a long-time Tanzania friend) and I shared a tent. I had a sleeping pad, a bag and a pillow, but my coat was a pillow most nights. We’d often sleep on a slope, heads up, feet down, so I’d have to pull myself up again--several times a night--whenever I slipped down!

SMK   When you climbed Kili  the first and second times. . .how old were you?

BEG 61 and 63.

Shira Camp at the eastern edge of the Shira Plateau is the 

stopping point for the second night. The summit of Kilimanjaro 

is in the clouds in the background.

SMC  How did you get started climbing?
BEG I read Edmund Hillary’s account of the first climb of Mt. Everest in the fifth grade. A few years later, I read a book on the history of climbing Mt. Everest, including George Mallory’s tragic attempt. And I knew that climbing Everest was something I would never do.  My first experience in climbing came much later when my cousin, Pete, and I climbed in Rocky Mountain National Park. Then I saw a documentary on PBS about a scientist with a neuromuscular disease who tried to climb Kilimanjaro. After this, climbing Kili seemed like something I could do. In 2004, when I met Walter Miya (former ranger for Tanzania National Park), I knew this could become a reality.

SMK   What made your third climb different?

Alpine chats are common along the middle portion of the 

Machame Route.

BEG Even though I was 66 years old, climbing was easier than when I was younger! I owe it all to working out at the YMCA.  This time, I wasn’t the last one to reach camp. I could actually walk around in each camp at the end of the day’s hike and not just collapse into my tent. On summit day, I actually made it to the crater rim before sunrise. I had never made it to the summit of any mountain before sunrise. The porters still called me “Babu” (Swahili for “old man” or “grandfather”).

SMK   What else motivated you?
BEG   It was there! It was an adventure! It was a reason to travel!

Looking down on one of the glaciers on the flanks of Kilimanjaro 

from the crater rim. The glaciers look much larger from above than 

from below.

SMK Tell me more about how you trained for Climb Number Three?
BEG   In 2011 during the second climb, I was in bad shape, weighed more than I had ever weighed before and had a very, very difficult time. I swore I’d never climb it again. It was time to take action, to do something about my lack of fitness. For me, joining the YMCA was that action. After joining in January, 2012, I spent 2 ½ years working out on treadmills, stairs, steppers, free weights and resistance machines. The first six months, a personal trainer was very helpful. Every day I was in Bloomington, I tried to work out at the Y. In 2013, I went for a streak of 50 days in a row! Gradually, I’ve gotten in much better shape and feel much better, much healthier. This transformation has been without drastically changing my diet. . .except for drinking less beer.

The summit of Kilimanjaro from Shira Camp. Small glaciers 

can be seen on the flanks of the mountain.

SMK   What was the weather like?
BEG Weather was good. It rained lightly the first night, then for about an hour into the morning hike. After that, we were above the clouds!

SMK   When I was in Tanzania, we walked around outside Mt. Kilimanjaro National Park. We walked along dirt roads past “shambas” (Swahili for small farms). I saw small block houses, chickens in the yard, banana trees, big family gardens, avocados hanging on branches. What did you find just inside the park?
BEG From Machame gate to Machame camp we walked through montane rainforest. We saw some blue monkeys near the gate, but wildlife is difficult to see in the forest. You can hear birds, like turacos; usually, we only get fleeting glimpses of them.

White-necked ravens are common once you get above the tree line. 

They are opportunistic and will attempt to pilfer food while you 

eat your lunch.

SMK The zone from about 9,200 to 15,000 feet has been called heath and moorland zone. What did
you find there?
BEG  The second day the trail is much rockier and the vegetation more sparse. The trees become smaller and eventually are no more than shrubs. There are numerous flowering plants, a lot of which are called “everlasting” by the guide. We start to see white-necked ravens and alpine chats. The ravens have very imposing beaks and have been known to take a climber’s chicken-leg out of the lunch box.

The second night is spent at one of the Shira camps on the eastern edge of the Shira Plateau. From here, if you are above the clouds, you have good views of the summit and good views of Mt. Meru to the west. Shira Camp can be a very windy place and sleeping can be difficult.

The morning half of the third day we spent climbing from Shira Camp toward the Lava Tower, a landmark on the southwest slope of Kilimanjaro. This time, I climbed up the Lava Tower over a shear, rock face.

SMK Oh, sounds scary!

The Lava Tower is a landmark that becomes the highest point 

on the third day of the climb.

BEG  This is one of the most dangerous things I’ve ever done. If I had known how risky it was, I would not have done it. Climbing along vertical rock surfaces (without technical equipment) is not something 66-year-olds should be doing!

From the Lava Tower into the Barranco Valley, you walk downhill through senecio forests. There’s a great view of the summit and some of Kilimanjaro’s glaciers above the Barranco Wall on your left.

Climbers descending from the summit of the 

Lava Tower.

SMK How much oxygen is there at 19,385 feet compared to sea level?
BEG The density of air at sea level is about twice what it is at 20,000 feet. So there’s roughly half the oxygen at the Kilimanjaro summit as there is on the Tanzania coast.

SMK I’ve read it takes twice the energy to do something if you have half the oxygen to breathe. How did you sustain your energy when you climbed?
BEG I would sit on a rock to rest, or just lean on my poles. I didn’t eat much on the mountain. No appetite.


SMK   Some people who start this climb don’t make the summit. Did you ever consider quitting?
BEG No. Continuing to climb seemed the easier thing to do. On the mountain anyone who quit had to walk down, or be carried on a stretcher—if there were carriers to do this. In a real emergency helicopters could land at some of the camps to evacuate climbers, but I have never seen that happen.

Uhuru Peak, the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro.This was
a new sign since my last climb in 2011, but already
well adorned with commercial messages.

SMK We were all excited to get your “summit” Email! Later, you wrote that after you came down to Camp, you could not walk.
BEG The descent from the summit to the highest camp, Barafu, left me with very weak and sore legs. Barafu is so rocky, it is difficult to walk at any time, but now my legs were too weak to walk at all. Eventually, I rested in my tent for an hour or two and recovered somewhat.

SMK How did your third climb end?
BEG On the last day we walked from Mweka Camp to Mweka Gate in 2 ½ hours. This has taken me 4 hours before. Since this was my last time (to climb Kili), I gave my walking poles to the guides. I was not sick after the climb as before, even though it had been a very difficult seven days. We were back at the hotel in Arusha by early afternoon. The water was shut off, so I did not get a shower until next morning.

The climbers, guides and porters celebrating the last day on the mountain.

SMK What advice would you give about climbing Mt. Kili?
BEG  You gotta want to do it!

~~~

Sally McKinney has been a travel writer and photographer for 4 decades and has hundreds of travel
stories in magazines and newspapers.  She has also written several guide books. You can read another of Sally's travel adventures here on Travel Boldly about her learning how to travel in her 80s in Peru and Tanzania.


Sally McKinney on Travel Boldly

The moon rising in the east next to Mount Kilimanjaro.

• After Slow Travel in Tanzania - We Went Poco y Poco in Peru. You are never too old to travel.
• Travel Adventures in the Galapagos Islands

Whitewater Rafting Adventure in Utah Offers Digital Detox

Views, views, and more views.  The western skyline in the heart of Canyonlands National Park is filled with them.  It's important to get up to the canyon rim to fully realize how in the middle of nowhere you are.  

No cell towers here!

5 Genuine Benefits to Getting Off the Grid and Onto the River

by Julie Trevelyan

You can almost feel the warmth of the cup and smell the aroma of hot 

coffee.The vast skylines in the heart of Canyonlands National Park will

melt the everyday worries away leaving you relaxed and refreshed.  

Sun up to sun down.

No doubt about it, mind-blowing advances in technology have made life easier for many of us. Instant access to information, knowledge, and one another has had a positive effect on necessities such as communication, wait times, activity planning, and an almost endless host of other essential life activities. But the flip side, as it turned out, can have extremely deleterious effects on people as well. So many options! So much information! Too many IMs, emails, comments, tweets, posts, text messages to respond to in a timely manner! As our contemporary world still seeks to find a deft balance between handling amazing technological innovations while also attending to our basic human need to detach and recharge at regular intervals, many of us tumble into a brutally endless tug-of-war between mental smooth sailing and a chaotic, seemingly bottomless pit of Very Important Things That Must Be Done Right This Instant Or Else. But relinquishing the incessant pressures of daily living, even for a short time, for the easy harmony of a river rafting trip in spectacular, serene wilderness areas can offer such a tremendous amount of self-restoration and rejuvenation that the effects can positively counterbalance significant periods of going full throttle and never taking a break. Here are five reasons why getting off the modern grid of life and onto the river can start to retrain your mind into its more natural rhythms, and help you create a more balanced life again.

The Big Drops on the Colorado River through Cataract Canyon are 

world class rapids.You get to experience them in an Oar raft. Close to 

the water, fully immersed in the experience.  We take the slow road.

1. Quiet your mind while soothing your soul. There are many studies indicating outdoor recreation and enjoyment have markedly positive effects on the mind. In the age of massive amounts of information available only a click away, it isn't surprising that our brains can quickly get overwhelmed and threaten to have a meltdown. River rafting trips launch you into a primal wilderness world in which you can be blissfully disconnected. Removing yourself from the constant chatter of the entire world can also remove the constant chatter of your mind as you ease into your body's instinctive clock and natural ability to just go with the flow on a remote, technology-free, beautiful river.

Getting off the river and onto a trail is high on the priority list for any

rafting trip. Exploring caves, ruins, rock art and the views.  Gets the blood

flowing and the imagination going of what it must have been like here 

in a different time.

2. Banish the stress. Many modern people have incorporated a frantic daily routine of multi-tasking
while running around at work, on errands, or after the kids into a perceived state of normalcy. Getting away from all those demands on your time can impart a sense of almost reckless freedom, then an easy, grateful acceptance of the simple joys of being alive and truly appreciating your days. From the gentle sound of the river's burble waking you in the morning, to the immense solitude and hush of mostly untouched river canyons, to the flicker of campfire flames under a sky so filled with stars that most urban and suburban dwellers never even notice they are up there, a tranquil getaway can almost magically help heal the acknowledged physical, mental, and emotional burdens of stress.

You can see stars forever in the night sky deep in the wilderness of a river 

canyon. We'll gather around the campfire to regal the stories of the day.  

Bring your guitar.  

3. Digital detox. Let's face it, the digital landscape is here to stay. While it can be a wondrous playground of connection and learning and information, it can also be a debilitating black hole of pointless Internet arguments between total strangers who simply must be informed of how wrong they are, link-following that leads you into a three-hour time suck when you only intended to spend ten minutes tops checking your email or social media profiles, and an overall excellent way to spend half your day doing random stuff online, the details of which you likely won't even recall in a week. Shaking off the fascinating yet viselike shackles of the digital universe for a few days or even a week while on a whitewater river adventure can give your mind the refreshing cleanse it needs in order to relax, rejuvenate, and naturally recharge.

A river camp is surprisingly full equipped.  Chairs, tables, a library can, 

portable toilet and one heck of a view.  Enjoy a swim or kick back and 

read a book while appetizers and dinner are being prepared.

4. Increased sense of exhilaration. While relaxing, river time can also offer new experiences that create an reinvigorated excitement for life. Many people will never get the opportunity to spy bighorn sheep quietly grazing by the river's edge as the raft floats by, nor will they chance a glimpse of a golden eagle hitching a ride on the wind currents far above, or be witness the playful silliness of river otters dipping in and out of the water with a sheer exuberance that can be delightfully contagious. Unwinding into the easygoing cadence of days spent on the water, unplugged yet reconnected, does an essential thing for you: it reminds you of how incredible are the hidden creatures, the simplicity of your true needs, and the small yet powerful moments that make up each and every one of your days.

Relaxed, rejuvenated, belly laughs and good times.  In the raft during the 

day or in camp at night you can't help but to transform to a lighter 

happier place.

5. Lasting impact. Re-entry into the frenetic connected world can sometimes feel abrupt after a soothing escape on a river trip. The second you get back into service, you're checking your phone to see what vital messages you missed. The sense of a need to hurry and be productive can grip people when they return to their regular lives. But studies do show that people carry the peaceful sanctity of their time in the great outdoors back with them, particularly if that time was especially long, especially intense, or if they return for repeated wilderness visits to restore and revitalize themselves far from the madding crowds. So go on. Get out there onto the river rafts, into the wild canyons, out under the stars. The dividends you'll get in return are even greater than the sheer fun of whooping and hollering down whitewater waves or floating through calm, lazy waters.

~~~

For a rush of excitement, captain your own boat and challenge yourself 

in a single inflatable kayak.  Just keep the nose pointing downriver and 

you will break right through the waves. 

Julie is a freelance writer, wilderness guide in southern Utah and author of 100 Classic Hikes in Utah (The Mountaineers Books, Spring 2016). She especially enjoys books, coffee, yoga, wild country, horses, and dark chocolate. See more of her work at Holiday River Expeditions' River Currents Blog or at www.wildgirlwriting.com  Find her on Instagram & Twitter at @JulieTrevelyan

 

If You Go:

For the active type you'll want to choose a paddle raft. Plenty of exercise,

splashes and thrills.  You'll rest easy at the end of the day, sleep well, 

get up and do it all over again.

Holiday River Expeditions offers multi-day backcountry rafting and mountain biking trips in Utah, Idaho and Colorado. Trips ranging from 2 to 9 days. Explore rivers and trails in Canyonlands National Park, Dinosaur National Monument, San Rafael Swell and The Frank Church Wilderness of Idaho.  Visit their website www.bikeraft.com or call their Salt Lake City business office 800-624-6323 to discover for yourself the "Genuine Benefits to Getting Off the Grid and Onto the River."

Hashbrowns for breakfast.

At the end of an adventure filled day it's time

for a toast.  Bonds are forged with your fellow

river travelers. A common interest brought to 

all together and a shared experience keeps 

you that way.

Each night as you pull off the river and arrive 

at your home away from home folks go off 

and stake their claim for the evening.  Find a 

camp with views of the canyon walls or close

enough to the river to lull yourself to sleep to 

the sounds of the rippling water.