Thoughts before leaving for Africa
This is the first post to my Kilimanjaro blog. I'm just weeks away from heading to Tanzania to spend 20 days climbing the Northern Circuit route to the summit and a safari afterwards. I chose the Northern route as it is the best route to give me time to acclimate for extreme high altitude. The summit is 19,341 feet - you can only stay for a few minutes as there is less thank 50% oxygen in the air. You have to breath deep all the time. Altitude sickness is my biggest concern given I have been training in Florida (at sea level) for months. Summit success rate on this route is 90%, so there is a slight chance that our guide may not let me finish. They assess your ability to climb twice each day and have the final say if you can continue or need to descend to lower altitude. I need to remember the goal isn't to reach the summit. The goal is to come back alive. No kidding. The stats show about 10-20 hikers die each year attempting this climb. I have to give a big sho...