The lesson of today’s hike was: we know how to do wrong really right!
This climb was with our friends Charlie, Michael and Jess (whose birthday it also happened to be). This was the first hike I had done without guides since a mountain climbing day in Wales a couple of years back. We were headed to Bear Mountain, on the west banks of the Hudson River containing trails that are part of the Appalachian trail, which stretches from Georgia to Maine.
Upon arriving it became clear already that the horror movie overtones of our previously blogged trip had been replaced by a noisy and completely enjoyable early morning hilarity. Furthermore, the base of the mountain was not so much just one small shack, as it was the largest cookout by a lake I believe I may ever have seen. That said, we had hiking to do and as such, the temptation of a day of cookouts had to be forsaken for a long (unbeknownst to us at this point how long!) hike through the forests.
The first trial, and first mistake, came when selecting where to start. We asked a local gift store seller where the trail began and he usefully pointed us in the right direction, letting us know that it would really only take about an hour. This seemed somewhat disappointing but none the less, on we went. We came across the first trail markers for the yellow trail, the one which we assumed at this point based on local signage was the Bear Mountain trail, and off we set. It was only upon returning to this spot some 7 hours later that we also discovered [an easier] white trail starting at the same location. Lesson learned there, read a more detailed map first!
Suspicions were first aroused when the trail started to go what can only be described as both downhill and away from the mountain. However, with much talk of “sometimes one must go down to go up” and other such phrases, on we went. An hour later it clicked that we hadn’t really gone up much at all and that this was in fact, perhaps, not the right trail. None of this really mattered to us in all honesty though. We were having a great and often hilarious time featuring many strange comments about our “wilderness gang” voiced in creepy American TV game show host accents.
About this time, with Jess taking the lead, we stopped to the sound of: “Wilderness gang, we have a problem.” Kelly was next to the scene to spy what was in fact, most assuredly a problem. A very large snake was lying next to the path and Jess had missed stepping on it by a tiny margin. Charlie usefully stated that he was quite sure there were most likely not many poisonous snakes in this region, before saying “I think it’s a rattlesnake.” As if on cue we heard the overly distinctive rattle and ran away like the snake phobic people we are. (It must be stated at this point however that Michael did, in fact, not run away. He instead stayed where he was to get a good laugh watching all of us).
We heard a few more rattles and decided the best course of action was to have a lookout whilst one by one, we all went off the path to the opposite side and cleared the snake by a very wide berth. Happy in our success we continued on with calls of “Wilderness gang challenge one: Complete!” As an aside, it occurred to Kelly later that if we can keep anything like this sense of fun whilst climbing Kilimajaro, or at least find ways to lighten the mood, we will have a significantly better chance of success.
It seemed pertinent at this point to check the map with a renewed vigor, and, this being the future, an iPhone with full signal was employed for the task. We were most assuredly going the wrong way and away from the mountain. We managed to work out the trails we needed however without too much worry and set back on the right paths on what we later found to be a 6 mile diversion over two more mountains than we had intended to climb!
The views atop West Mountain were incredible however and made it all very worth it. We got to walk along a very beautiful ridge with incredible views to either side, and whilst the phrase “god must have been a painter” was delivered in jest, there was more than a hint of truth… but then we got tired. And we realized, 5 hours or so into the day, and two mountains already climbed, that the quickest way back to the car was actually over Bear Mountain. An elder gentlemen with two cute puppies was also helpful enough to point out that it was in fact very steep and not that easy. And 4 miles. Helpful words indeed.
Somewhat begrudgingly at first we set off on what was quickly appearing to be a route that was straight up (after a strange diversion along a road — more on that later). This last part was not that easy, but we all knuckled down. Without terribly much in the way of any complaining, but a notable cessation in conversation, we continued our assent. Just at the stage when we were all ready for a little break and decided to do so at the next clearing, we reached the clearing, and mercifully, the top of the mountain. We had conquered the originally intended mountain — a mountain with a parking lot on top. And a Powerade machine. Clearly we were charting new paths through the wilderness at this stage!
On the way back down we had the benefit of a staircase carved into the rocks. A staircase which led us back to the point at which we started, and the hitherto unseen sign for the trail leading directly up Bear Mountain. All told, we were very glad to have got it totally wrong and had a full day hike out of our trip not simply a quick, but knee busting, hour long staircase climb.
As for lessons learned for Kili, it’s always nice to know you can break through a wall of tiredness and just keep on keeping on. This ended up being a very full day hike, and whilst not a full comparison, we are hurting very little today considering. It is even nicer to know our moods can be retained throughout minor setbacks as well. Largely though it is hard to know how much preparation is enough, but the fact that we enjoy so thoroughly going out and hiking gives me great hope. The process of doing all this is a lot of fun, despite the work, and as such makes the whole endeavor feel much more attainable.
In additional news about the larger projects at hand now, we are very firmly into the process of planning our fundraisers and will have details soon. As ever, any thoughts/comments are gratefully received. We will be blogging next in a little more detail about GAFFER also in order that it becomes clear just why we are doing this all. Granted, it is a wonderful personal adventure, but there is a much greater reason than our attempts to do something personally challenging, and we would like to highlight those in more detail shortly to try and put this all in a bit of context.
So for now, over and out and thanks for all the support,
James & Kelly (Manjaro)
Okay, granted this is somewhat irreverent, but truth be told it does at least mention Kilimanjaro and it is strongly tied to one of my favorite memories from Kenya: rescuing a stranded car from Tsavo West National Park at night, with me sat on the roof of a range rover trying to navigate by the stars, all soundtracked by this song played up to me through the sunroof! Possibly the cheesiest night ever but it made me smile.
In other news climb two is booked for next weekend with some good friends of ours. Bear mountain again but a different route. Very much looking forward to this! We shall try and take more pictures this time also. Look out for another awesome round up from kelly about this after we have been, I think she nailed the last one so I may just leave these recaps in her hands!
Hello dears,
As many of you know, we left our beloved borough of Brooklyn at six-thirty Sunday morning to embark on our first proper hike (apparently, as we had been taunted by one of our fellow hikers, “you won’t find any hills like this in Brooklyn!”). Though I’m still not sure exactly where Harriman Park was (NY? NJ?), I can fairly say that the day was right out of a horror film! Sort of.
This isn’t because James and I couldn’t handle the intensity of hiking 1,150 feet up a mountain that was rated three out of five (hey, you gotta start somewhere), or that the blazing summer sun boiled our blood and we melted. We didn’t even get attacked by monster mountain bugs (my personal worst nightmare).
But, as James and I giggled about throughout the day, we were going through the plot of a typical, generic horror movie, where a group of stereotypical randoms meet up, and head to a sketchy park for a “leisurely” hike that turns deadly (Ed. note: ours did not turn deadly, but if it did, we wouldn’t have been surprised). This included a big, red, rather unstable van that carted us to and from the mountain (come to think of it, we were never exactly told which mountain we were going to be climbing either — all we knew was that we were hiking the very ambiguous Raccoon Brook), a group of police checking cars (for a murderer on the loose?) at the entrance of the park, and our fellow hikers — all questionable characters.
At one point, a woman right behind me slipped on a rock and took a substantial tumble that resulted in a sprained ankle, and the splitting of our group. When we did meet up with our guide an hour later, he said, in a calm, yet manacle voice, “Oh, she’ll be just fine now,” which we were certain meant that he had cut off her legs.
Ludicrous ideas aside however, it was the perfect first hike. We hiked for a few hours in air that wasn’t contaminated, reveled in the “honks” of birds instead of cars, and picked and ate blueberries throughout.
James was awesome (though I was significantly worried when he was about to order a Frappucino from Starbuck’s before our departure — thankfully, he opted for an iced tea instead), and I tried hard to keep up with him. Since I was behind him for parts of the climb, it was interesting to note how differently we (men and women?) used our bodies to climb. For example, when “scrambling,” which I learned is an activity merging hill walking and rock climbing, I used (or, as James would say, I “flail” my arms) my arms and legs equally to hoist myself up. James, however, only used his legs — and very efficiently. I did struggle a bit with the steeper climbing, so gaining more leg muscle it is for me then!
My next step will be to invest in some proper hiking boots, as my ankles hurt me throughout the duration of the climb. (Duh!)
But, on a positive note, I only complained twice! James would say that I complained three times, but I’m fairly sure that saying my feet are hot is a fact, not a complaint (I hate socks!).
On the whole, our motivation levels are high, and we can’t wait to get onto another mountain! In fact, if anyone has any clever ideas on how/where to hike/climb on the cheap, without a car, and around the New York area, it would be greatly appreciated!
Finally, I want to thank you all for your support so far! The feedback from our friends and family has been incredible, and it’s all very encouraging!
Oh, wait!
Guess what? This is my first ever blog, thanks to James’ sweet friend, Garrett, who inspired me to get over my weird fears of putting my thoughts onto the internet. We also have a tumblr account now — which I still don’t quite understand, but James seems to think it’s pretty neat!
So you’ll be hearing from us soon. Until then, wishing you all the best!
Love,
Kelly
bags are packed - pre 6am wakeup, and off we head for our first little trip up something tall!
1. Johannes Rebmann, a German missionary, is credited with discovering Mount Kilimanjaro in 1848. He explored the lower slopes and sent the Royal Geo- graphical Society his findings, including a description of a snow-capped summit. Experts at the time doubted the possibility of a snow-capped mountain located near the equator.
2. The first successful summit occurred in 1889. It took took six weeks. Today the average climber can do it in five or six days.
3. Some of the camps on the mountain sell beer.
4. Mount Kilimanjaro stretches 5,895 metres into the sky, making it the world’s tallest free-standing mountain. It’s also the highest point in Africa.
5. The snow caps are rapidly diminishing, having lost over 80 per cent of its mass since 1912, likely due to climate change. They could be entirely gone by 2020.
6. On June 29, 2009 eight blind climbers made it to the top of the mountain in an effort to raise funds for 52 blind babies in Arizona.
7. South African Bernard Goosen was the first person to scale Mount Kilimanjaro in a wheelchair. He did it twice. First in 2003 (nine days), and then again in 2007 (six days).
8. Famed humourist Douglas Adams, author of the legendary Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy series, once ran up the mountain dressed in a rhinoceros suit. 9. Justin Timberlake, along with singer Kenna and rapper Lupe Fiasco are planning to climb Mount Kilimanjaro in the fall of 2009 to raise awareness for the
worldwide water crisis.
10. Mount Kilimanjaro is actually a massive stratovolcano that was formed by repeated lava flow. It has three volcanic cones, two of which are extinct. The third cone, Kibo, is the highest point on the mountain and is dormant.
11. There are six distinct ecological systems on the mountain: cultivated land, rainforest, heath, moorland, alpine desert and finally the arctic summit.
12. Coffee is grown on the lower slopes and is a major export.
13. Ernest Hemmingway wrote a short story entitled The Snows of Kilimanjaro where he captured the beauty of the mountain in the following passage describ- ing the mountain “…as wide as all the world, great, high and unbelievably white in the sun.”
14. Most porters are hired from villages surrounding the mountain. They make anywhere from U.S$3.00 to $6.00 a day, not including tips. Porters carry much of the luggage on their heads.
15. Over 20,000 people attempt to climb Mount Kilimanjaro a year.
16. There are six established routes that climbers can take up the mountain. The most popular is the Marangu Route, which has been dubbed the “Coca-Cola” route.
17. Altitude sickness is a hazard of mountain climbing. It occurs when a person ascends too quickly to acclimatize to higher altitudes. Mild symptoms include headaches, lethargy and insomnia, thus slow ascents are recommended.
18. Around 10 people die each year trying to climb the mountain.
19. A porter from the first successful summit lived to see the centennial of that climb. At the time of the anniversary he was 118 years-old. The oldest person to summit Mount Kilimanjaro was an 87 year-old Frenchman named Valtee Daniel.
20. The fasted verified ascent of Mount Kilimanjaro occurred in 2001 when Italian Bruno Brunod climbed the Uhuru Peak from Marangu Gate in 5 hours, 38
21. minutes and 40 seconds. The fastest roundtrip was accomplished on Boxing Day in 2004, when native guide Simon Mtuy went up and down the mountain in 8 hours and 27 minutes.
22. The meaning of the word “Kilimanjaro” is shrouded in mystery, but some experts believe it means “White Mountain.”
23. It is estimated that out of every 1,000 tonnes of water that trickles down the mountain, 400 are directly from the ice caps.
24. As part of a water conservation strategy, Shamsa Mwangunga, the National Resources and Tourism minister announced last May that 4.8 million indig- enous trees will be planted around the base of the mountain to help prevent soil erosion and to guard water sources.
25. Mount Meru is an unofficial training ground for climbers preparing to take on Africa’s tallest point. It is located 70 kilometres west of Mount Kilimanjaro and measures 4,566 metres high.
http://www.algonquincollege.com/africa2009/Documents/25%20fun%20facts.pdf
So, just prior to the year that Africa gets its first World Cup, James has upped sticks and moved to the United States, and what better way to spread the greatness of GAFFER and raise awareness than by doing something equally epic. In this spirit, James and his partner in crime, Kelly, shall be climbing Mount Kilimanjaro! Not only is it pretty tall (well, only the fourth biggest mountain in the world, but it’ll do) but, GAFFER HQ lies somewhere within its shadow, and as such it feels fitting.
In doing so, we hope to capitalize on a renewed interest in “soccer” and help raise GAFFER’s profile in the US. We shall be arranging fundraisers, trips, events with local sponsors and, perhaps most excitingly (particularly for those following James’ last magnum opus from Kenya), blogging the whole adventure. Look forward soon to our initial adventures getting our climbing shoes on up and around upstate New York and stay with us right through until we are very up in the air and GAFFER gains that many more years of growth and security helping do what we can for the awesome people of Kenya.
To donate to GAFFER please visit http://www.gaffer.org.uk/donation. GAFFER could not continue providing the sporting facilities, workers, education and support we provide without your help. We are forever grateful!
