January 2, 2010

This is the year we climb Mt. Kilimanjaro, and I must confess, I am getting a little nervous about the whole adventure. Some have questioned our desire or should I say our sanity in planning to summit the famous mountain. Most who do don't know that the climb does not entail serious mountaineering with ropes, pick axes, etc. Still, I am somewhat nervous about the cold as I tend to get cold pretty easily. When we go SCUBA diving, I am the one in the 3/2 mm full wetsuit with a hood while others are wearing swim trunks and t-shirts in the 80 degree plus water.
Just before Christmas, I ran into a woman I know who climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro a few years ago. She told me they made it to the summit in a freak blizzard. What does this say to me? Layers, layers, layers and more layers. =O
We climbed the local Iron Mountain the day after Christmas. It is a very popular trail in San Diego County about 25 miles east of us. The ascent was more than 2,000 feet in just under three miles. I felt pretty good going up. Coming down was another matter. As I think I have shared, steep downhills - especially those laden with loose gravel over bare rock - scare me. My 17-year-old was very kind, however, and held my hand so I wouldn't fall. Having two labs excitedly racing around us, bumping our legs, added to my anxiety (I mean fun).