13 people summittied Mt Kilimanjaro on June 29th via the Machame route. It was the third World Wide Trekking trip up Kilimanjaro this season, with all 3 having successful summit climbs. We had great weather during the entire trip. The group, consisting of memebers from Michigan, upstate NY, NYC and Utah all enjoyed the climb. Our youngest member was Jake Taylor, just13 years old, and our oldest (this season) was an impressive 72 years young. (the oldest person on record to have summited Kilimanjaro is 79!) Although Kilimanjaro is always challenging, our group enjoyed 1st class mountain service from the 65 local members on staff for our trip. Great food and comfortable camps help ease the rugged mountain environment.
This group, as always, started as strangers and became close friends quickly during the trek up Kilimanjaro. As we returned from the mountain we stopped and visited the new HOP Kilimanjaro Childrens Community site on the way. The progress on the land and site is great to see.
Last night we all enjoyed a hot shower and celebration BBQ at our lodge to savor our hard-earned accomplishment. Today we head out on a 4 day safari in Lake Manyara National Park, and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. We are looking forward to seeing much of the local East African culture as well as the big game in the National Parks.
