Pretty neat information they have there on the mountain. I like the presentation on the mountain climate.

According to the presentation, there are five climatic zones

Lower Montane Forest – Gentle lower slope with a cool moist climate.
Upper Montane Forest – Lichens, Mosses and ferns.
Heath and Moorland – Smaller trees, forest slowly opening up.
Alpine Desert – Thin dry air, wild fluctuation in temperature.
Summit – Snow capped!

Unfortunately, it didn’t state which altitudes the ecological zone change.

Then again, in the reply email I mentioned earlier, I remember reading that “the first few days that are the most important for aesthetic appreciation.” I guess the vibrant flora plays a part! Hmm… I’ve seen deserts, and I understand why! Boring!

Actually, I’m supposed to reply to the email, but I haven’t. I have posted up the email to my Rovers committee, but it seems like not many are interested due to the really steep price. Yeah. US$2000 isn’t something within our budget, at least for now!

Oh! I forgot where I read this, but I came across something interesting. It seems that when people trek to snow capped mountains, the water freezes, so you can’t drink from your bottles! Two ways to overcome this are (1) pack it deep inside the bag to protect it from the freezing environment (2) add some alcohol to lower the freezing point of the solution! Cool right?

…try to walk as much as you can… Try to get at least an hour of walking into every day. In addition to this, try to get some morning and evening sessions of aerobic activity in, such as cycling, running or spinning…

Weekends and days off you should try to head for the hills. Try to walk for 6 to 8 hours, perhaps on consecutive days … Use the boots that you will bring with you to Kilimanjaro so that they are well worn in.

Seriously, to me, it sounds a little “to easy”. I was really panting my lungs out when I was climbing Mount Ophir last December! It sounds really easy to say that a certain trek “is a walk, not a run”… when you are carrying that 60 liter backpack with all your stuff – anything is a “run”! Haha… I’m not going to let my physical fitness be my obstacle to reach the peak of Kilimanjaro man! Not after I travel all the way to Africa!

One more thing to note is that I may really need to invest in a good pair of boots. So far, I’ve been trekking with sandals, or just normal sports shoes. Sandals are great for the wet treks, so you don’t get soggy feet at the end of every day. But ultimately I think protection is more important. During one of my trips to Berkelah Waterfalls, I slipped and fell on the slippery rocks and because I was wearing sandals, my toenails almost came off! It bled like… argh, I’ll keep gross the detail out. Haha… Sports shoes are good for trekking, but they aren’t made for trekking. The insole never fails to drop out after its first trek in water… and yuks, it really stinks after getting dipped in all the mud and stuff.

Actually I’m thinking I need a total of three pairs of footwear for all my treks! One pair of aquasocks for water based treks, one pair of boots for treks like Mount Ophir or Mount Kinabalu, and of course, one cheapo pair of slippers for wearing at night!

I was doing more research on Kilimanjaro yesterday, and I bumped on the Wikipedia entry. Cool. I found out more information about the mountain – not really relating to trekking, but interesting.

Kilimanjaro is a stratovolcano with several peaks! The highest peak – which is the one that we are trekking, is called the Uhuru Peak, on the volcano Kibo. The two other peaks near Kibo are
Shira, and Mawenzi.

The entry also said something more related to trekking:

An ascent of Mawenzi requires rock climbing and/or snow/ice climbing skills. The climb to Uhuru Peak is considered to be a relatively straightforward endeavor; however, ample time must still be provided for proper acclimatization to prevent altitude sickness. The three easiest routes, Marangu, Rongai and Machame can be climbed by a person of good health, and require no mountaineering experience.

Yeah right! Trekking the 4th highest mountain on earth with no mountaineering experience? You got to be kidding! I’ll not take any chances!

There are several (at least 5 or 6) routes up to the Uhuru peak, and it seems that the Marangu Route is the most popular route. You get to stay in huts all the way! Wow! Can’t imagine how these people still have the energy to build huts up there! However, I don’t think I will be opting for the Marangu route. The reason why I am planning this trip so early is so that I can take the time to train for the more physically challenging route – which is more scenic! The Shira route!