Mt. Kilimanjaro - Scrambling Up Barranco Wall

Feeling great, we decided to change our plans and push forward without the extra day of acclimatization. We figured the faster we got off the mountain the less chance we had of getting sick from GI issues. However, no sooner did we make our decision then problems struck in “River City.” Chuck just got “the runs” in a major way. Never one to complain, he claimed to feel fine. We had dinner and then it was my turn to run for the outhouse. It had to be the damn raw carrots. We cursed our lapse in judgment!

I woke the next day and praised the mighty gods of Cipro, a hiker’s all-purpose antibiotic. I felt completely fine and Chuck was holding his complaints to himself, which was easy to do as each day the views of Kilimanjaro improved dramatically. From the time we left camp until about 10:00 am the low hanging sun lit up the mountain. Deep blue skies accented the stately mountain. We started hiking down with a dip from 4,000m / 13,200’ to 3,950m / 13,050’, but it didn’t last long. Before us was a sheer cliff called the Barranco Wall. Having purposely avoided any technical climbs, it was the steepest, most exposed ascent I have ever climbed. While it was the closest thing to a technical climb in any of the ten Great Treks, it was basically a long vertigo-inducing rock scramble. Like a chess master, I plotted my steps a few moves ahead while locking my attention to the sheer cliff, ensuring that three points of my body were in contact at all times. However, the hype of the wall turned out to be much more than the reality and we made it no worse for wear.

We eventually got to Barafu Camp at 4,550m / 15,015’. It was our final campsite during the ascent. We were alone in the cold. Exposed and without shelter, we huddled next to a rock in an attempt to lessen the swirling winds and froze until the tents arrived. The campsite had a great view of Mt. Meru piercing through the clouds.

 The story continues...