When I say briefly, I mean briefly. Although it wasn’t even below freezing, the wind and the altitude prevented any thoughts of naked dance celebrations manifesting themselves in my euphoric mind! The anticipation began early as I saw Kili for the first time from lonely Kilimanjaro International Airport. We drove about an hour to our hotel and climbing base for our first night “on the mountain.” I use the word “hotel” loosely because the family owned and run Marangu Hotel is more a home from home than a hotel. It was built in the early 1900’s as a farm and retains the rustic charm of the era, with fruit trees and vegetable gardens providing the bulk of the menu, and fine wines complementing the home produce. I realized I’d never tasted a real cheesecake before, as I followed my home-made soup, vol au vents and then roast pork main course with this “dessert of kings.” At this stage, I’d have happily manned base camp for a week!

That same evening, Seamus Bryce-Bennett led the pre-climb briefing. His experience and love of the mountain was obvious, and he filled us with not only great respect for Kili but confidence in our own ability to conquer it… as long as we did one thing – walk slowly.

How slowly? You shouldn’t have to open your mouth to breathe, at least not on the lower slopes. Why? To give your body as much time as possible to acclimatize to the altitude. The result? Not only did I reach the summit with relative ease, but en route I had time to spot two black and white colobus monkeys, a blue monkey and a bushbuck, plus countless baboons and a dazzling array of different birds. Next time (and there just might be a next time) I’ll take a bird book and binoculars!

Day one began with a fine cooked breakfast, after which our kit was thoroughly checked (you can borrow or hire from the hotel what you don’t have or forget) and we were introduced to Bryson – our head guide – and our porters. This was Bryson’s 22nd summit climb, so I felt sure he knew the route! Everything was counted and double-counted, food was packed and our gear thrown onto heads in a clamor of Swahili banter and jokes. I felt a bit guilty at having my provisions carried for me, but was relieved to hear that the Marangu porters are some of the best paid on the mountain, and all have guaranteed wages and medical cover.