Mount Kenya - Day 4: Lenana Peak, Reaching The Summit

The view from Lenana Peak

Today is the day that I either will make it to Mount Kenya's Lenana Peak, or I will have to admit defeat in a high-altitude trekking endeavor for the first time in my life.

I peel myself out of my sleeping bag at 2:30am after barely sleeping last night.  Before leaving, I manage to drink one cup of tea, but can't bring myself to force any of the biscuits down that our crew has laid out for us.  I'm having a hard time distinguishing between the symptoms of not sleeping much, not eating enough over the last couple days, being congested from a cold, and general altitude sickness.  I know that Craig has been struggling with altitude also, and I find myself thinking that if he were to back out this morning and not make an attempt at the summit, then I might back out too.

We had planned to leave Shipton's Camp at 3am, but don't actually leave until 3:30.  It's dark and cold outside, and I'm not feeling very confident about making it to the top of Lenana Peak (4985m / 16,355ft).

Mount Kenya - Day 3, Burguret Route

When I wake up at Mount Kenya's Highland Castle camp on Day 3 of our trek, I have a bit of a headache.  It isn't too severe and is gone by the time I finish my coffee at breakfast, but it is an omen for how my day is going to go.

Our hike today involves 5-6 hours of walking to the point where the Burguret Route joins the Summit Circuit.  Then, we will have to cross the Hausberg Col (4600m / 15,091ft) before descending to Shipton's Camp, which serves as the base camp for Lenana Peak on this side of the mountain.

Local Guides: Burma - Bagan

Htay Win poses next to some of his photographs.

"Local Guides" will be a recurring theme here at Global Goebel Travels, where I recommend local guides from the various locations that I visit around the world.

Burma, and especially Bagan, was a destination to which I wanted to travel since soon after I began traveling internationally in 2001.  Like many travelers to Burma, I spent my time seeing the "Big Four" destinations of Yangon, Mandalay, Bagan, and Inle Lake when I was there.  While researching the trip online, I came across some webpages advertising photography tours of Bagan.  With my interests in old temples and in photography, I thought this sounded like a great way to spend a day or two of my trip.  The dates mentioned online didn't fit into my travel schedule.  Nevertheless, after sending a few emails, I was referred to a licensed Bagan guide named Htay Win, who happened to also be a photography enthusiast.

The Story Behind The Photo: The Heart of Darkness - Nyiragongo Volcano

 

"The Story Behind The Photo" is a recurring theme here at Global Goebel Travels, where I chose one of my favorite travel photos and tell the story behind shooting it.

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In my last "The Story Behind The Photo" post, I featured the Darvaza Gas Crater in Turkmenistan.  Now, I'm going to feature another photo of a large burning hole in the ground.  However, this one is created by Mother Earth instead of by a Soviet industrial accident.

Mount Kenya - Day 2, Burguret Route

I’m half awake and lying in my tent at the Giant Bamboo Camp, which is our first campsite of the Burguret Route on Mount Kenya. I’ve had the urge to pee for at least a few hours now, but haven’t been able to muster up the energy or overcome my fear to leave the tent.

Fear?... What fear?

Local Guides: Indonesia - Krakatau

Gimon and me on Anak Krakatau, Dec 2012.

"Local Guides" will be a recurring theme here at Global Goebel Travels, where I recommend local guides from the various locations that I visit around the world.

In December, I visited Anak Krakatau, or "Child of Krakatau", as a weekend getaway from Jakarta.  After contacting a few different companies, I eventually settled on a company called Ndeso Adventure.  After settling all the details, they hooked me up with a guide named Gimon.  Oddly enough, after working in Indonesia for seven years, he's the first person I've ever met named Gimon.

Mount Kenya - Day 1, Burguret Route

It’s February 18, the day after my 36th birthday. Where have all my years gone? I’m starting another trek today, on another trip, to yet another country. Is this really only my 51st country? Wait… this is my 51st country. Although I haven’t made it to every country in the world as some bloggers my age have, nor have I even joined the travelers’ century club, 51 countries is no small achievement. By the time I finish this 25-day trip, I will have increased my total to 54 countries. At that point, I will have been to more countries than I have been to Pearl Jam concerts! (Anyone who knows me personally can attest to the fact that is a shocking statistic).

My 51st country is Kenya, and I’m here to climb Mount Kenya, the second tallest mountain in Africa, as a warm-up for my climb of Mount Kilimanjaro, the tallest mountain in Africa. It should be noted, though, that my group was only climbing to the top of Lenana Point, the third highest peak on Mount Kenya and the highest one that you can reach without any technical climbing skills or equipment. At 4985m (16355 ft), however, making it to the summit of Lenana Point is no small feat.