February 11, 2014
Shira Plateau (Ken Maclaurin)
IMG Senior Guide, Jenni Fogle, just called in from Shira Camp, about 12,300 ft., on the side of Kilimanjaro. This is the first camp where we get a full, unobstructed view of the mountain. She said the team’s doing great, having fun and are tucked into their tents for the night. The camp’s a bit exposed so they had some wind tonight but it was dry. That’s a reasonable trade off, especially at night. Tomorrow’s goal is Baranco Camp, at about 13,000 ft. It’s the perfect acclimatization day. They’ll reach an altitude of about 14,000 ft. before heading down to camp. “Climb high, sleep low†is a long-standing climber’s adage. Nice, too, because the trail is never really steep. They’ll log the miles, goose that red blood cell production, but not beat themselves up.
Hope to hear from her tomorrow. Bottom line – all’s good in Africa.
Phil Ershler