July 16, 2018

I received two great phone calls from Phunuru… The first came in last night at about 8:30pm PST (6:30am Kili time), it was Phunuru calling in from the summit! He said it was a great climb, they were out in front of all of the other teams and were able to enjoy the mountain pretty much all to themselves!

The second call came in this morning at about 7:30am PST (5:30pm Kili time), it was Phunuru again, this time from Mweka camp. The had made it down to Barafu Camp (their base for summit day) by mid-morning, enjoyed a short nap, packed up, had lunch then powered on down to Mweka camp which sits at about 10,000ft., a much more comfortable altitude to sleep at for their last night on the mountain.

Tonight the team will sleep soundly knowing the hard part is behind them… just a few hours down the trail tomorrow followed by a few beers, a hot shower and 3 days on safari!

All is well on Kilimanjaro!

Tye Chapman

July 15, 2018

The team at Barafu Camp. (Phunuru Sherpa)

I received a short dispatch from Phunuru this morning.  He said the team is doing well at Barafu Camp (15,400ft) and they’re all looking forward to their summit attempt in a few hours.  They’ll ‘wake up’ at 11:00PM and hit the trail at 11:30pm. If all goes as planned they’ll be on the summit at about 8:00am. The sunrise from atop Kilimanjaro is well worth the effort.

The next call from Phunuru is hopefully from the summit!

Now we wait…

Tye Chapman

July 13, 2018

Kili from Barranco Camp (Dustin Balderach)

We got word from Phunuru that the team had another heckuva a day on the trail today.  They enjoyed the hike and the challenge of getting up to the Lava Tower (14,500ft.) for lunch.  After lunch it was pretty much all downhill to Barranco Camp which sits at about 13,000ft., right in front of the Barranco Wall, tomorrows objective.

The team is acclimatizing well and ready to tackle the Barranco Wall tomorrow morning!

Tye Chapman

July 12, 2018

Phunuru checked in this morning with some good news… despite the less than ideal weather yesterday, the team enjoyed great views and much better weather today on their trek up to 12,000ft at Shira Camp. Once in camp, they settled into their tents, had some tea, and explored a bit.

Tomorrow they’ve got a bit of a bigger day. They’ll climb up to the Lava Tower (14,500ft.) for lunch, then drop down to Barranco Camp which sits at about 13,000ft. They’ll be huffing and puffing a bit as they near the Lava Tower, but it’s a great acclimatization day for the team.

All is well at 12,000ft on Kilimanjaro!

Tye Chapman

July 11, 2018

Things got off to a bit of a chilly & wet start on Kilimanjaro today, but that didn’t dampen the spirits of Phunuru and his team!  Despite the weather they enjoyed the hike through the jungle and made it to Machame Camp (10,000ft.) where they warmed up with some hot soup and a nice pasta dinner.

After a good night of sleep they’ll hit the trail tomorrow morning at 8am. Destination: Shira Camp (12,000ft.).

All is well at Machame Camp on Kilimanjaro!

Tye Chapman