Although hundreds of people climb Kilimanjaro on a daily basis, there is still very little advice out there to help you prepare. I have therefore put together all of the information I wish I had known before my climb, including some details on my pre-climb training, tried and tested kit list and top tips.
Pre-Climb Training:
In the three months prior to the trip, I upped my daily steps to between 20,000 (10 miles) and 30,000 (13.5 miles) per day. I have a Fitbit Blaze which provides accurate details on steps and floors climbed. Most evenings, I would walk for 2-3 hours and the rest would be spread throughout the day. Although I live in London, my family are based in Surrey and every weekend I would drive home to do the Box Hill hike. It is an 8.6 mile circular route across the North Downs, the Fitbit counts almost 200 floors climbed over a 3 hour period, therefore it was the perfect training ground. Wherever possible, I would complete this hike on a Saturday & Sunday. Back to back hikes are important because your muscles will need to adapt to handle consecutive days of hiking on the mountain. I also continued with spin classes because cardio health is also essential and I was doing leg presses as part of my physio which ultimately strengthened and prepared my leg muscles for what was to come.
I was not able to prepare for the altitude and although I had some experience from my time in Ecuador & Peru, your body can react differently on any given day. In order to limit the side effects of altitude sickness, I ordered Diamox tablets from www.doctorfox.co.uk I am pleased I did because although I was still heavily affected by the altitude, I suffered very little nausea and no sickness at all.
Essential Top Tips:
- On summit night, fill a thermos with warm water before leaving base camp, your bottle and water bladder will freeze after around 3 hours, (still 4 hours before you reach the summit) and your thermos may be your only water during this part of the climb.
- Electrolyte tablets will be your savior, add two tablets to one litre of water every day. I would not advise you to add these to your water bladder because it is very difficult to get rid of the flavour. While taking the Diamox, you are encouraged to drink at least 5 litres of water per day. You will be flushing everything through your system so it is essential to add these salts back in.
- Add an electrolyte tablet to your water bottle on summit night. The water will start to defrost on the way down and not only will your body be crying out for the electrolyte replacements, the icy, flavoured water will be like a little welcome hug.
- There are no showers on the mountain and by the end of day 3, you will be so cold, you will not want to take your clothes off. Be at peace with the fact that your base layer at night 3, may still be your base layer on the morning of day 6 – gross but stripping off in a tent in sub zero temperatures is not fun. At the very least, ensure that before you take your last pre-summit nap, you go to sleep in one or two of the base layers you plan to where for the summit hike. When you wake at 10.30pm, your tent will be icy and it is important to be warm and to stay warm for the long night ahead.
Tried & Tested Kit List:
Below is a list of my kit and links to the sites you can purchase these items. Although some of the items are a little expensive, I felt that under the circumstances, it would be better to buy the best, rather than deal with a malfunction at 5,000m. I fortunately had no problems with any of my kit and I would highly recommend everything I have listed below:
- Everyday jacket – http://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/the-north-face-womens-solaris-triclimate-jacket-a4314127?id_colour=98
- Osprey daypack – http://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/osprey-womens-sirrus-26l-e1314022?id_colour=161
- Osprey 3L water bladder – http://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/osprey-hydraulics-3l-reservoir-e3194048?id_colour=108
- Trekking poles – https://www.alpinetrek.co.uk/black-diamond-womens-trail-pro-shock-trekking-pole/
- Down jacket – http://www.blacks.co.uk/womens/100037-mountain-equipment-womens-lightline-down-jacket-navy.html
- 2 Pairs of zip off trekking trousers – https://www.mountainwarehouse.com/trek-stretch-womens-convertible-trousers-p16068.aspx/dark%20grey
- Rab duffel – http://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/rab-kit-bag-120l-e2314353?id_colour=123
- Waterproof trousers – https://www.mountainwarehouse.com/womens/trousers-shorts/womens-waterproof-trousers/pakka-womens-overtrousers-p12245.aspx/black
- Waterproof jacket https://www.mountainwarehouse.com/womens/jackets/womens-waterproof-jackets/womens-pakka-waterproof-jacket-p2628.aspx/dark%20teal
- Merrell waterproof hiking boots – http://www.blacks.co.uk/womens/183748-merrell-women-s-chameleon-shift-traveller-mid-waterproof-boot.html
- Waterproof, all season gloves – https://www.sealskinz.com/UK/all-season-glove-black-charcoal?gclid=CMq7kKzH4NMCFdaRGwod2t0BdQ
- Merino thermal bottoms – https://www.mountainwarehouse.com/merino-womens-pants-p13374.aspx/black
- Merino thermal top – https://www.mountainwarehouse.com/merino-womens-round-neck-thermal-top-p13371.aspx/black
- 6 pairs trekking socks – https://www.mountainwarehouse.com/walking/footwear/walking-socks/merino-womens-explorer-sock-p12513.aspx/purple
- Rab gaiters – http://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/rab-womens-latok-alpine-gaiter-b9114106?id_colour=124
- Scarf / chute – http://www.blacks.co.uk/womens/098325-ps-pol-chute-floral.html
- Decathlon roll neck thermal top – https://www.decathlon.co.uk/2warm-womens-top-blue-id_8371595.html
- Decathlon ski, thermal trousers – https://www.decathlon.co.uk/slide-500-womens-ski-trousers-black-id_8331734.html
- Warm Beanie – https://www.zaktiactive.com/dip-in-dip-out-beanie-p14064/ombre%20blue
- Rab baseball cap – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rab-Freight-Cap-Size-Shark/dp/B01C77SU7I/ref=sr_1_4/258-9079822-7098451?s=clothing&ie=UTF8&qid=1494256249&sr=1-4&nodeID=1730944031&psd=1
- Zip up fleece – https://www.mountainwarehouse.com/womens/fleece/womens-fleece-jackets/comet-womens-fleece-p11708.aspx/navy
- Fleece jumper – https://www.mountainwarehouse.com/hebridean-womens-cowl-neck-fleece-p15116.aspx/burgundy
- Liner gloves – these can hired
- 1 full set of activewear
Money & Meds:
- Tips – $200 in cash per person. This is then split between the G Fighters and the CEOs and given to them on the final morning, after breakfast.
- Portable toilets – $45 in cash per person, as mentioned previously, I would highly recommend that you agree to hire these as a group – they are literally life changing.
- Malaria tablets – not necessary for the the climb itself, however they are necessary in Moshi, I therefore continued to take them throughout my trip, including on the mountain.
- Yellow fever exemption – £25 (Yellow fever is not present in Tanzania, however they do ask to see your certificate at the border. I obtained an exemption form from the Travel Clinic and this was accepted)
- Altitude tablets – All 12 of us on my tour were taking Diamox. We were taking half a tablet, twice per day and I started taking mine the day before we started hiking. I noticed that my fingers were a little tingly and because it is a diuretic, bathroom visits were more frequent, however apart from a little nausea, I did not suffer any further symptoms of altitude sickness. https://www.doctorfox.co.uk/altitude-sickness/
Other Essentials:
- Sleeping bag – 4 season, it can be very cold at base camp (this can be hired)
- Travel towel
- First aid kit, including plasters and antiseptic wipes
- 1 litre water bottle
- Water purification tablets
- Antihistamines
- Head torch
- Head torch batteries
- 6 packs of tissues
- 2 packs of baby wipes
- Compeed blister plasters
- Electrolyte tablets
- Deep heat patches
- Tiger balm
- Hand sanitiser
- Insulated water bottle
- Dry shampoo
- Hand & feet warmers
- Sunscreen, minimum factor 50
- Ziplock bags
- Energy Bars, especially Kendall Mint Cake
What to pack in your daypack – 5-7kg:
- 3L water bladder
- 1L water bottle
- Rain jacket and trousers
- One fleece
- Sunscreen
- Sunglasses
- Camera
- Mobile
- Medication – diamox
- Face towel
- Credit / debit cards
- USD
- Waking poles
- Portable phone charger
- Energy bars
- Ziplock bag
- Tissues & hand sanitiser
What I Wore On Summit Night:
- 1 x roll neck base layer
- 2 x thermal base layer tops
- Warm hat
- Head torch with fresh batteries
- Sunglasses in bag
- Balaclava to protect from wind
- Liner gloves and ski gloves
- Hand warmers inside gloves
- Foot warmers in between spairs of socks
- 2 x fleeces
- Down jacket
- Thermal bottoms
- Ski trousers
- Hiking boots
- Socks x 2 clean for summit
The above list may sound like a crazy amount of clothes, however my fingers and toes were still scarily cold. I would also highly recommend at least factor 50 sunscreen and lip balm to protect against the wind.
I hope this list is useful, however if there is anything I have missed, please feel free to get in touch.
