27. The Final Leg – August 15

As I settled into my sleeping bag on that 6^th night, I was very glad it was the last night I would be spending in that tiny tent, on the ground, and without indoor plumbing.  Many people like me, with Parkinson’s disease, have sleep issues so I hadn’t really slept well the whole trip.  This was in addition to taking Diamox twice a day for the prevention of altitude sickness.  It works by being a diuretic.  I had climbed the Barranco wall, a 1000 ft. sheer vertical rock cliff where a slip could plummet one off the face to most certain injury or death.  We have since learned that the man we saw being carried out on the stretcher the day we scaled the Barranco wall died. I had climbed all through the night going from 15,300 ft. to 19,341 ft. in three miles to reach the summit.  All the hiking we had done had been above 11,000 ft. with most of it above 13,000 – 15,000 ft. We also learned that two other people died the same week we were on the mountain most likely from altitude sickness.   We had weathered sun, wind, cold, and steep, rocky, scree strewn trails.  Yet the most difficult part of the whole journey was taking care of the calls mother nature made and managing the small tent space.  At the beginning of the trek, I would look for a rock to hide behind to do my business but by midweek, I didn’t care who saw what.  Many people with PD have difficulty holding back when the call to pee comes.  My group learned early on that if I said I needed a “trail break”, I would need to answer the call very quickly or risk having an accident.  Diamox along with drinking a lot of water to stay hydrated, made these calls come frequently along the way and they came two to three times a night.  Pulling off to the side of the trail was easy compared to what I had to accomplish in the tent.  First, I had to get out of the warm and relatively comfy sleeping bag.  Next, was to get the tent entrance unzipped.  Getting the zippers to slide was a very difficult task and one that I rarely did by myself.  This meant that Jo had to wake up too and help get the zippers to work.  Often, we both had to work together pulling and fidgeting to get them to unzip.  Then I got my very dusty boots out of the bags in which they were stored inside the tent.  I would set them just outside the tent entrance and then try and get my feet into them which again, was never easy to do. By this time, I was struggling to hold the pee, but I still had to get my long johns down, squat over a bottle and hope the positioning was right to collect the pee.  Then I had to do the reverse order of pulling up the long johns, screwing the lid on the bottle, sit inside the tent with my shoes outside and get them off, store them back in the bags and get the zipper closed. This occurred two to three times a night in the dark, cold air.  Then it was dawn and the ritual of packing up the gear and dressing for the days hike started.  

On that last morning I was very tired and even felt weak when I woke up.  I found a clean shirt to put on and decided to wear long johns and leggings as we would be descending where it would undoubtedly be warmer.  As I was packing my duffel bag I couldn’t find the hard case for my bifocals which I wore in camp.  I had non bifocals for the trail so I wouldn’t be thrown off looking down on the trail. I needed to keep the bifocals safe, so I was desperately trying to find the case when January came to my tent and asked what I needed to get ready.  I told him I was trying to find the case but I’m not sure he understood.  I gave up and put the glasses in a secure pocket and hoped they wouldn’t get scratched.  By the time I got to the mess tent I only had time for a few bites of breakfast.  The crew was ready to get packed up as we had a good distance to cover that day to get out of the park.  The group made its way to the High Camp gatepost for a picture before beginning this last leg of the trek. Then back to our camping site where we were treated to our crew of guides and porters singing the Kilimanjaro song to us.  It was a fun rendition with each of us being named in the verses and members of the crew picked up Laura, Connie, Betty, me and pulled some of others to dance with them in the middle of the ring.  Everyone was happy and smiling on that sunny morning as we put on our daypacks and began the last leg of this incredible expedition. 

The trail started out very steep with large rocks creating deep steps.  As I stepped down that first section I felt a sharp pain in my right butt cheek.  The pain was so sharp that my leg faltered causing me to wobble and I almost lost my balance.  At the same time, I felt lightheaded and dizzy.  I was bringing up the rear of the line with Abel right behind me who noted my stumble. He instructed Matthew to take my daypack and I told him I needed my poles to steady my gait.  So, Abel took my poles out of his bag and gave them to me.  I also got one of my GU gel packs and sucked out the sweet, gooey contents.  This gave me almost instant energy which enabled me to continue without feeling like I was going to faint.  But as I continued down the trail, the pain was almost unbearable.  I knew there was only one way off the mountain which was to put one foot in front of the other and keep going despite the pain.  I was hoping the pain would let up as I trudged on, but it did not, so I told Abel I needed to stop and get some Tylenol.  I knew I had some packed somewhere in my daypack, but I could not find it.  Abel said Alex had some so the group stopped while Alex found his Tylenol and I took two extra strength capsules.  Then I had a nature call.  By this time, we were out of the alpine desert and there was good enough vegetation to find a place of privacy.  I was still in a lot of pain and getting situated to accomplish emptying my bladder took time. Trying to squat was difficult so I took a while to do my business. When I returned to the group, Alex asked if I’d had a good pee.  I wanted to ask what made the experience a good pee?  Was it having the feeling of relief from a full bladder?  If so, then it was indeed a good one but everything about accomplishing the task was difficult.  Fortunately, my hikers back home had taught me the advantage of wearing panty liners to manage the drip on the trail, so I didn’t need to use TP.  This was invaluable to me for the entire time I was on the mountain. 

A few hours down the trail we came to Mweka Camp.  We took a short break here and took another group photo beside the gatepost sign.  By this time my pain had subsided and as we continued down the path I was doing good.  We were now entering the rain forest.  The vegetation had transitioned to dense, lush trees, shrubs, and flowers.  The trail also transitioned to a steep, muddy, slick root laden path.  Some of the group took spills onto the muddy terrain but no one got hurt.  Once again, Matthew was by my side keeping me upright on the trail.  We saw black and white colobus monkeys in the treetops.  The colorful flowers along the way were very pretty and added a new dimension to the trail.  It was also getting warmer and fortunately for us it did not rain so we remained dry. Eventually the trail became more of a gravel road.  At last, after hiking about eight miles in six hours we came to the Mweka Gateway entrance of the Mt. Kilimanjaro National Park.  This was the end of the trail.  We had made it all in one piece.  We were exhausted but very happy.  As we stood at the gatepost sign to take our last group picture, the crew sang one more time the Kilimanjaro song.  I was so ecstatic that I was actually able to get a little move in my body as I sort of swayed to the tune.  There were a few concessions available and some of the group got sodas, beer, snacks, or souvenirs.  Before going inside the building to register our accomplishment officially with the National Park Service, the crew washed and scrubbed our muddy boots.  Then we logged our names into a book of records that would keep our accomplishment in perpetuity.   

Before we left the area, we had a tipping ceremony.  This is where we gave tips to those who had served us so diligently throughout the entire week we were on the mountain.  It is hard to describe how it felt to have these men and women work so hard to take care of our every need and desire with such respect and genuine kindness. To say I felt humbled and honored seems inadequate.  We had decided collectively ahead how much we would leave each person.  Laura prepared a speech that she read to the crew telling them about our mission with the Michael J Fox Foundation.  She told them how four of us actually had PD and the other five were hiking in honor or memory of a loved one.  She thanked them for their devoted service to us. Then she read the list of how much each crew member would receive from us.   The smiles and applause in response to their awarded monetary amount was very touching.  Then, we spread a tarp on the ground where we put items of clothing or gear that we were willing to leave behind for our crew to keep.  There are no mountaineering shops in Tanzania and even if there were most of them could not afford to buy the necessary items.  The porters make about $10.00/day while the guides make $15.00-$20.00 a day.  They are very grateful for whatever hikers choose to leave behind as that is how they obtain the necessary clothing and gear for themselves.  Some in the group left almost everything they brought for the trip declaring that they would never camp again.  Many left their sleeping bags, boots, jackets, poles, and various clothing items.  The crew members got to choose an item one at a time until most of the major items had been distributed.  It has been very rewarding to see pictures of some of our crew wearing some of the items left by our group.  It was especially wonderful to see one of the women crew wearing Jo’s jacket with the comment that now she was able to stay warm.  At the end of this post, I will leave a GoFund me account Jo started to help certain crew members meet some of their goals and an Amazon shopping list for items they need.  I invite you to participate in giving this Christmas by including our wonderful crew on your list.   The last group picture was of us with our crew.  Then we said goodbye to these individuals who had impacted our lives in a profound way and who will never be forgotten.   

The bus ride back to Moshi didn’t take as long as the ride out had taken as we were departing from a gate that was closer to Moshi.  Once there, we made a stop at a few ATMs to get cash for some shopping and other needs for the remainder of the trip.  Next stop was a restaurant for a hot meal.  We had eaten well on the trail, but this meal was really good and satisfying especially since I hadn’t eaten much for well over a day at this point.  When we checked into our hotel that night all I cared about was a hot shower, flush toilet and traditional bed with sheets and blankets.  It was a wonderful night after the best shower I have had in many years. After a week of not shampooing my hair the experience was pure pleasure.   The next morning, we enjoyed a great buffet breakfast with all the traditional items one would expect at any place back home.  Then some of us were off for some souvenir shopping.  I spent that afternoon relaxing around the pool and dining area of the hotel in the company of some of the others from our group.  Dinner that night was a grand event with a sumptuous buffet meal.  Then Abel and the three other guides had an award ceremony where we were given our official summit document.  There were speeches made, cheers and hoorays shouted out and lots of applause.  Each of us got our certificate plus a locally made sash placed around our neck.  I was the oldest climber so got my award first. The others were awarded in order of oldest to youngest.  Mark Kohus, Jo Simmons, Kristen Gillan, Justin Fields, Laura Aldrich, Connie Qian, Alex DiLalla, and Betty Thomason all got their certificate and sash with pride of a grand accomplishment.  Then there were pictures taken, hugs given, tears shed, and goodbyes said.  I was up by 5:00 a.m. the next morning to leave for my long flight back home.  I rode with Connie to the airport where we said goodbye and then I was off to be back in the air and airports for most of two days. Jo and I had one more opportunity for our paths to cross as we had about 2 hours in Doha, Qatar with overlapping layovers.  We hugged and cried as we said goodbye knowing we would be BFFS and that it would not be long before our paths would cross again.   

I arrived at the Asheville airport alone, very weary, a bit overwhelmed and ready to sleep in my own bed.  My husband Jay was there to welcome me home and offer big congratulations for such an accomplishment.  The next two days were spent mostly in bed sleeping and resting.  I am in touch with all eight of the other hikers and the four guides on our trek.  We are planning to participate in other Fox Foundation fundraisers in the future and are also planning a reunion for one year to the day after reaching the summit.  I remain in recovery mode and frequently look through pictures taken on our hike.  It was an incredible, magnificent, remarkable, difficult, tiring, strenuous but forever unforgettable experience.  I am very grateful to have gone on this life changing trip with the group of hikers and the remarkable crew that accompanied me.  My gratitude is grand for all who inspired, encouraged me, and generously contributed to my campaign for this journey.  My story isn’t over yet though so look for more chapters in the future.  I enjoy reading all the comments left on this blog so thanks to those who share their thoughts with me.  

https://www.amazon.com/registries/gl/guest-view/13BY3FA83ZTXL

 GoFundMe https://www.gofundme.com/f/a-journey-of-empowerment-together-we-rise 

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