Kili Diary - Day Three

A broken nights sleep and an early start did not take away my energy levels today.  After a huge breakfast, we are packed and off by 08:30am.  We leave behind Simba camp at 2700m and straight away meet a huge steep incline.  We leave the rain forest behind and enter the moorlands. As the altitude increases the size and number of plant life diminishes.

I suffer for the the first 15minutes, I'm out of breath, my legs are somehow tired and my hamstrings are tight, and I start to get concerned how this 10 hour day us going to pan out.  Luckily for me, the breakfast must have kicked in because I find my rhythm and I'm away.  The incline and hot sun is punishing.  After 4 hours on the march, the lunch stop provides a well deserved rest bite.  The day claims its first victim of the newly named condition known as 'African Arse', but the double efforts mean we keep pace well.

After lunch, the next 3 and half hours of hiking provides a varied effort test with rolling hills and varied inclines all the way until we reach camp. 

The day has been long, and I've managed to consume 5 and a half litres of water while trekking before reaching camp.  I arrive with a spring in my step thanks to the sugar rush from the supplements and sweets I've been eating.  But equally, I'm greeted with a sugar crash along with a bit of heat stroke from being in the sun all day.  A short rest in my tent before dinner is well timed and very much needed. 

We as a group note, that Kilelelwa Camp at 3600m seems further away from our objective of Kilimanjaro than our previous camp.  We relax well, all of the group feel very mild symptoms of altitude sickness or fatigue.

We all eat another epic dinner together and even manage an impromptu music intro quiz.  We are all tired, but somehow manage to delay sleep a few minutes more to enjoy the breath taking view of the clear night sky.  Made more impressive by our altitude and lack of light pollution.  But without cloud to block our view, the temperature has dropped significantly as many of us are caught by surprise as we dive for the warmth of our sleeping bags.  Its just past 9pm, and doesn't take long to get to sleep.