My goal is to climb Kilimanjaro 50 times including, raising funds for water projects in East Africa with Fields of Life. I have worked with our head guide for the last 10 year and he was recently voted Kilimanjaro’s Number 1 Guide. Athumani has worked hard to make it happen over the past 20 years of his career working on Kilimanjaro. Thanks to him our company has been transformed into a world class outfitter. This is due to the hard work and dedication of our entire team working away on the ground building our dream team.
Too Many Rescues
It is sad to say we witnessed far too many rescues off the lower slopes as well as, high on the mountain. After climbing Kilimanjaro 35 times I am convinced, 2 trips with less days really limits your chances of success. Don’t be fooled by cheap operators that do not look after their staff. The guides do not understand how an expedition should be run as a result, safety and service is not a priority. In my opinion you need a minimum of 8 days on the mountain including using Kosovo Camp at 4,880m/ 16,008 feet as your high camp. Kosovo Camp gives you the best launching pad for your summit attempt.
Lack of Physical Preparation
I have never seen so many people struggling as they walked past us on the mountain, Like I did on the last two trips. Some people are still not paying attention to physical preparation leading to risk on the mountain. This is becoming more concerning to me. On the summit night there were a lot of people who were stumbling down the mountain. So many people are being helped, hence they are having themselves or their bags carried. This makes me determined to keeping writing about this online. Kilimanjaro summit night is a serious endeavor up and down and you need to be getting in the specific training prior to arriving. Going to high altitude comes with some risks. You need to be fully prepared and pick an itinerary with more acclimatization and safety in place. LEARN MORE.
Stepping up to the Mark
A lot of our staff are moving up the ranks and we are so proud of them. Firsty, some of our kitchen crew have moved to tent crew. Secondly, some of our tent crew have moved to the serving clients. Finally, we have had a number of servers become guides. Every staff member on the ground is working hard to move up the ranks. It is great to see our staff using their own initiative to develop and grow and aspire to be the very best team on Mount Kilimanjaro.
More People are Picking Ian Taylor Trekking
We have over 30 trips to climb Kilimanjaro each year in addition, to a wide range of private teams joining us this year. Our staff understand that excellent service, safety and quality run trips leads to sustainable growth. Cutting corners is not the way to run professional trekking trips when the risks are high. We want to see sustainable development, investing properly in the local people, culture and economy.
Climbing Kilimanjaro for the First Time
The first time I ventured to climb Mount Kilimanjaro clearly, I knew very little about altitude and acclimatization. The company I used advised a 6 day climb including a sleeping in the crater night definitely, not a good idea. I received very little information other than our itinerary. The training advice was to get out an walk on mixed rocky terrain. Vague at best. At Kilimanjaro International Airport we were met by a shifty guy who could barely communicate with us. The guide showed up late, drunk and provided very little information about the follow day. This is not how you provide a once in a life time adventure on Kilimanjaro.
Climbing Kilimanjaro the Wrong Way
Looking back on the trip, the pace on the trail was way too fast. I remember sitting on plastic seats with no back, in a leaking tent. Being served the same food most days was fine but clearly, poor service. Minimal attention was paid to our safety and the guide was not very interested in us or the mountain. He kept talking about the next company for his next climb. I got very sick below the Lava Tower at 4,600m/ 15,091 feet. I struggled on my own, all the way into camp in Baranco 3,900m/ 12,795 feet. We then moved directly to Barafu camp 4,673m/ 15,331 feet and then struggled to the summit and all the way back to the gate in one day so they could save money on the trip. A shocking way to manage any group for a once in a lifetime mountain experience.
Learning From Mistakes
My first experience on Kilimanjaro was was awful also, if anyone wants to know the company you can message me. I decided that there was a better way to manage trips to Kilimanjaro, so I started to develop a plan to build a team that works together. I wanted to see staff have opportunities to develop and grow and gain access to education. Our goal was to keep more staff become guides, cooks and build a future. We wanted to give, loans to help start businesses and buy land. When the staff can grow our business would grow. It is great to see our Kilimanjaro family working together towards a better future.
By no means are we there yet. We are well on our way to developing a very solid team on Kilimanjaro and for our safari trips. Since we started running trips, we have overcome challenges but working with the same team for each trip in steadily coming to fruition. We will always improve our service and I can say proudly that we offer one of the best services on Kilimanjaro. We are getting 100% of people to the summit on most of our climbs. Read some REVIEWS.
Top 50 Tips
Out of our original TOP 10 TIPS we have developed our TOP 50 TIPS for climbing Kilimanjaro. After climbing Kilimanjaro over 35 times without a doubt, there are two keys to success. Firstly, pick an itinerary with a minimum of 8 days. This will give you enough time to be safe and adapt to the lack of oxygen. Secondly, make sure you have been doing the correct specific training. Coming with excellent physical strength and conditioning for steep mountain walking up and down hill is important.
Climb Kilimanjaro With The Dream Team
in summary, if you are thinking about climbing Kilimanjaro, why not consider joining our Kilimanjaro dream team. We have the best guides, chefs, tent crew, portable toilet crew, servers, security staff along with, bigger tents for your comfort. Ian Taylor Trekking provide better seating, safety, oxygen and the best food available on Kilimanjaro. We do not cut corners and we can guarantee an amazing experience climbing Kilimanjaro. CONTACT US and learn more about our service, available dates and we are available 5 days a week to answer any questions you may have.