Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro 2006

There is the mountain known as "The Crown of Africa" Kilimanjaro!

We will reach the summit on June 27, 2006!

Our Summit Video

Clips from our summit of the tallest mountain in Africa

We made it to the roof of Africa, the summit of the mountain... and while we were there, there was one more thing that needed to be done!

Summit of Mount Kilimanjaro brings something else too

This is our last (and longest) day of our climb to the roof of Africa, the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro. The summit brings something else too.

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Kilimanjaro Related Stuff

Internet help for our climb to Mount Kilimanjaro

Here are a variety of sites where you can learn about our Kilimanjaro climb, the mountain, Africa, and us!

Our promo video: We built this awesome video to showcase our auction winner! Watch today... it's short.
Our 2006 Kilimanjaro climb: We won't fall! Mount Kilimanjaro 2006. Jonathan and Carrie hike and climb Mount Kilimanjaro 2006.
The Lemonade Diet: So in preparation for our Kilimanjaro hike, we decided to try the *now infamous* Lemonade Diet, also known as "The Master Cleanse." Yes, that's right. For seven days, we drank nothing but water, lemon juice (from lemons), maple syrup, and yes Cayenne Pepper! We had lots of odd cravings along the way.
Our Unique Sponsorship option and eBay Auction: Our trip is open to sponsorship! We ran an auction, and we're still open to sponsorship, for companies that are looking for a great way to promote, and also would like to donate some funds to a worthwhile cause. Check out the sponsorship page!
Carrie's Classics: Carrie has a web site up (under construction) about the books she's read and movies she's watched. Read her reviews... see if you agree/disagree!
Strive4impact: Strive4impact is Jonathan's personal philosophy on life. He believes in having a positive impact on every life he contacts. This web site is about the philosophy, and about Jonathan's travels up to this point. It is the location for everything Jonathan.
Kilimanjaro brought to you by Wikipedia: I am a big fan of Wikipedia! It's such a cool concept, and they seem to do a pretty good job of policing the content. This page about Kilimanjaro is just awesome!

Our Kilimanjaro Climb Blog

We're blogging our climb

We will be blogging up until the day we begin our hike, and will blog our thoughts once we're back! These are the lastest entries from our Blog.

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Our Travel Gear

Gear for lugging our butts up the mountain

So just what do you take when you go on a climb like this?

Well, it's pretty darn specific actually! Here's the basic list!

Sleeping bag rated at least zero to minus 10 degrees, along with a small camping pillow (not completely necessary) and Thermarest pad. Down filled sleeping bags are the best. I would recommend the following brands (Mountain Hardware, North Face, Marmot, Moonstone, REI)
Daypack/backpack. The majority of your possessions will be transported by the porters but you will want to have a few basic items (such as water, camera, raincoat, snacks, warm clothing) readily available throughout the hike and will need a backpack to carry those items yourself. Expect to carry no more than 30 lbs.
Thermal water flask as water will freeze at the higher altitudes
Light shoes (sneakers) or hiking sandals for overnight camps, not for trekking on the mountain
Liner socks to keep your feet dry and limit the risk of blisters
Windproof and waterproof rain gear, preferably a Gore Tex jacket and pants
Down Jacket
1 pair of shorts 1 pair of Long hiking pants

I consolidated these two items into one. The reason? Carrie and I both got those zip-off cargo pants from REI, so we now have two pairs of hiking pants and two pairs of shorts. Kinda' nifty!
Light weight polar fleece jacket (REI, Northface, Mountain Hardware, PolarTec, etc.)
Wide-brimmed hat or visor
Boots (Gore Tex)
Mittens or warm gloves with glove liners
Balaclava and/or warm hat (wool and fleece blend)
Gaiters (OR-Outdoor Research brand)
One pair thermal or woolen socks (Smartwool brand)
Thermal underwear (polypropylene, polyester, or silk)
Water resistant trekking boots (Gore Tex) Vasque, Saloman, Asolo, Merrill
Walking stick or trekking poles (Leki brand)
2 Water bottles at least a liter, water purification tablets and powdered sports drinks
Pocket knife or Leatherman type tool
Notebook or journal and pencil

(Carrie and I both really prefer pen, but when the air gets really cold, that pen won't do a bit of good.)
Headlamp (Petzel) and small flashlight
Walkman or MP3 player
Paperback book (plan to share with others!)
Spare batteries (lithium batteries are the best for cold temps.)
Toilet paper (one roll, biodegradable)
Soap (biodegradable, small hand towel, wash wipes, Purrell type hand antiseptic)

We've been told that wet wipes become your best friend on a trip like this (especially for women!)
Lip balm, sun screen

Because at 19,000 feet, the sun has just a little more intensity!

We had to get shot

Actually, we had to get SHOTS!

Here's the list of immunizations necessary for this trip! It's amazing that we paid doctors to stick pointy things into us.

An international certificate of inoculation against yellow fever is required for entrance and must be produced at the airport upon arrival. A certificate can be obtained through a physician's office or a local health clinic.

Yellow fever - one shot.
Anti-malarial precautions are recommended prior to departure.
These are taken in pill form. No shots!
Hepatitis A
Three shots over a few months
Hepatitis B
Three shots over a few months
Typhoid
These can be taken in pill form. No shots. Whoo hoo!
Tetanus
One shot
Consult your doctor or a travel clinic for professional advice concerning additional inoculations and precautions you should consider, should you decide to go to Africa.
They told us that these shots can range from $150-$300. I spent $320 on mine so far, and still have one Hep A & B set to do.
Oh yah, and I also got a polio booster. That was so nice of them to do for me!
Guess what? That was one more shot.

Helpful Amazon.com Kilimanjaro stuff

Some books and tapes on the mountain, it's history, and climbing mountains in general!

Some books and tapes on Kilimanjaro, it's history, and climbing mountains in general!

Kilimanjaro - To the Roof of Africa (Large Format)

Amazon Price: (as of 07/13/2009)

Nova - Volcano Above the Clouds: Kilimanjaro, Africa's Tallest Mountain

Amazon Price: $17.99 (as of 07/13/2009)

Kilimanjaro - The Way It Is; Volume 1: The Western Breach

Amazon Price: (as of 07/13/2009)

Expenses

So I knew this was going to cost, but I had no idea!

So I knew that this trip would not be inexpensive. However, the cheapest flight totals we are finding from Denver to JRO are $2000 or so. (Total $4,000). That's just the flight costs.

The actual expedition is $2,600/person, total $5,200.

There is also travel insurance, which is about $400/person, total $800.

And then there is the gear. We're borrowing some of what we're taking, and purchasing the rest. Good gear has good costs associated with it.

None of this is complaining, because I'm so glad to have the opportunity to go, but I think that if people are wanting to go to Kilimanjaro, they should be well-prepared for the price tag.

I know that it will be worth whatever costs we pay for the trip, and other people going should have that mind-set as well. I think that the mindset (that the costs are well worth the experiences we'll have) is a necessary part of the planning for anyone going on a trip like this.

You can check out the actual costs in Carrie's blog post at:

http://blog.kilimanjaro2006.com/2006/04/plane_tickets.html

Breaking in the boots

These boots were made for walking!

These boots were made for walking! It's true that our new hiking boots were made for walking. BUT (there's always a but, isn't there?), they must be broken in first. We're currently working ours in. I'll post more here soon about the boots we've chosen (respectively), why we chose them, and how the breaking in process is going.

Ebay Auction

We decided to open our trip to sponsorship

Our ebay auction will go live at 5:00 Pacific today! I am excited! To give a company the opportunity to travel along on our journey, and get them a ton of additional exposure, is really a very exciting prospect! It also adds one more motivation for the climb, which is very exciting!

May 22nd, 2006 Update:
So to update the auction... we've ended up with 20 sponsors so far (as you can see on kilimanjaro2006.com), and we now leave in 17 days! We're very excited that the ebay auction went as well as it did (and we're still open for sponsorship), and we're looking forward to promoting these companies at the top of Mount Kilimanjaro!