Climbing Kilimanjaro: Day 6 from Millenium Camp to Mweka Gate

     Exhausted from the long summit day, I slept solidly until 4:30am, the type of sleep where time passes in a heartbeat and you have no memory of dreaming, or even moving.  I dozed off, woke up to drink some water about every twenty minutes and continued this pattern until a bit after 6am.  At an altitude of 12,600ft above sea level, the breathing was easier and the morning sun was bright as I crawled out of the tent.  Kilimanjaro was beautifully framed by the clear blue sky to the north and we took some nice pictures after breakfast.

The author with Kilimanjaro in the background

     As a trekking team, we put together our tips for the G Adventures team and gave them to our lead guide, who then divided the money up among the team members.  Guides earned the most, followed by the cook and then the porters (aka “G Fighters”).  We also pulled together a nice pile of gear that we were willing to part with – everything from a nice jacket to socks to sweaters to extra snacks – and the G Adventures team took turns selecting items.  Following this, and the lead guide’s announcement of the tips, we celebrated by singing the Kilimanjaro song and danced a bit on tired legs.  My fellow trekkers elected me to give a short speech, and on behalf of the trekkers, I recognized each group within the G Adventures team and thanked them for all of their support and friendly professionalism in helping us to safely enjoy the trek and climb Kilimanjaro.  

I'm just too tired to do much dancing

     Eager to complete the trek, we departed Millennium Camp about 8:45am for the last five hours of hiking.  The weather stayed fairly nice despite some clouds rolling in as we descended back into the rainforest less than an hour later.  The trail was in good shape, although a bit slippery and muddy in some sections, as a couple of hours passed and we reached Mweka Camp at 10:30am.  We took a short rest and had a snack, but knew that we still had three more hours before the end.  The guides motivated us by describing the delicious lunch that awaited us, so we got up on tired legs and started down the trail again.

View of Moshi in the distance as we hike towards Mweka Camp

     The last three hours were long and I checked my watch more often than usual, willing the time to pass as we walked through the green rainforest.  The last hour was perhaps the most difficult, as my knees were starting to painfully throb from the constant descent, but the trail finally leveled out a bit and wound back and forth through the greenery. 

A nice, flat section of the trail through the rainforest

At each turn, we hoped to see Mweka Gate, and finally did just shortly before 2pm.  We took some pictures, signed in at the ranger station, and hobbled over to a large table for a welcome lunch of hot stew and warm pops.  I changed into sandals and sat down as it started to rain again – somehow fitting to finish in the rain, as we had essentially started five day earlier in the rain.

So happy to see Mweka Gate

   But the rain didn’t last long and we slowly walked back over to the gate area after lunch.  The guides presented us with our summit certificates and we then loaded up the bus at 3pm for the ride back to Moshi. 

The author and the G Adventures guides

I really enjoy this time of every trek I go on (the ride back to the hotel, whether long or short) because I can quietly reflect on accomplishing my goal, am tired in a way that I know I’ve done my best, and am looking forward to cleaning up for a celebration dinner with my fellow trekkers.  The ride passed quickly and we were back at the Sal Salinero Hotel in Moshi.

Ahhh, time to celebrate

     I packed my dirty trekking clothes and gear into one bag and retrieved some nice clean clothes from the bag that I had left in storage at the hotel.  Fortunately, there was plenty of hot water.  It’s always a great feeling when I get a hot shower after six hard days of hiking.  Several of us met for drinks at 7pm at the hotel bar and the Kilimanjaro brand bottle of beer was cold, refreshing and tasty.  All of us were at dinner at 7:30pm and we had a nice meal together.  Most went to bed after dinner, but I went back to the hotel bar for one more drink with some of the group and we had a nice time talking about the trek and sharing some of the funnier moments of the last six days.  I went to bed at 11pm – the air conditioning wasn’t working in the hot Tanzanian evening, but the mattress felt great and I had no trouble falling asleep.

Next up:  My last day in Tanzania as our trekking group disperses to the beaches of Zanzibar, an African safari, a Morocco adventure, and Minnesota.