One small step for man, one giant leap for me!

Whew! Well, although my legs almost crumbled beneath me when I got out of bed this morning, the climb was a success! I actually still cannot believe I did it. I think it was the 2nd coolest thing I've done (only behind the safari) and by far the hardest. Kili, here I come!

Alex, Adam (a friend of Alex's from college), and I left early Friday morning to head to Arusha National Park. The excitement was there, as well as the anxiety. When we drove into the park, there were giraffes on either side of the car, what a wonderful way to start our journey.

The first leg of the trip was either a 4 hour trek, or 6 hours. We decided to take the long path the first day and the short one on the way down. We made it up in 3 1/2 hrs, even taking a lunch break with the view and sound of a waterfall, one of nature's most beautiful creations.

At the first camp we met a couple who was just descending. They were doing the 3 day hike as well and their description made me a little nervous about the summit. I did not want to hold the guys back. We also ran into another group of volunteers who were climbing, as well. After dinner and a game of cribbage the boys and I turned in for an early night's sleep. Ha. I don't know why I thought I would be able to sleep in the freezing cold with the thought of the climb ahead of me!

Day two held a 4 1/2 climb to Saddle Hut, where we would stay the 2nd night. We did the climb in a shorter amount of time than Jafari, our ranger, said we would. (Yes, we made references to Aladdin once learning our ranger's name.) When we got there I was already freezing! Nothing I could do made my toes feel at all warm. After lunch Jafari wanted to take us up to Little Meru, a 45 minute jaunt up to 3800 meters, our camp was at 3500. When we got there I was so ridiculously tired I commented on how 3800 meters was enough for me! No need to go any further! Jafari, Alex, and Adam all three said, "You're making it!" I loved their enthusiasm. Jafari left us up there because he said he wasn't feeling well.

After our easy descent, I took Jafari some Advil and told him we'd see him in the morning. Was I really up for this?!? The boys and I ate our dinner, one more peanut butter sandwich and banana (I won't be eating either of those items for awhile, as we lived on that for every meal!), and got in bed by 7. Why so early, you may ask? Well, we had to be up by 11:30 p.m. in order to be ready to climb at midnight. Our summit was planned for sunrise.

As we set off, the other group of volunteers left, too. One of their members was trekking slowly, so their ranger asked Jafari and our porter, Peter, if they could join our group. So, instead of the 3 of us, there were now 7. Ok, I hope you are picturing me bundled up as much as humanly possible and completely nervous about the hike. Apparently I ""rocked it"(quotes to Alex) for the first few hours. Then we hit the sand. Ok, before the sand came Rhino peak, at 3800 meters. While coming off Rhino Peak we literally had to scale a rock wall. Did you remember this was in the pitch black! There was no moon helping us out, merely flashlights and headlamps. I am a little thankful I couldn't see below me, otherwise I may have had a panic attack. And this came after Alex's comment of "certain death to our right and certain death to our left." I kindly asked him to refrain from such comments for the duration of the climb.

Ok, the sand. With every two steps taken, one was lost. I was completely frustrated. With the darkness the sand seemed never ending. At one point, during what Jafari said was the hardest part, he grabbed my hand and helped me through. Way to earn your tip, Jafari. He was so encouraging, and the boys were, as well. Thank goodness. At the end of the sand we stopped to rest. Jafari told us this was it for him. He felt absolutely awful and Peter was going to lead us the rest of the way, pole pole (slowly, slowly). Seriously?!?!? Our ranger is leaving us? Peter had been great, though, so I knew he could lead us.

Peter continued, with me saying, "Caca! Pole pole! Asante sana!" over and over again. He spoke little English, but always replied with "pole pole, dada! Hakuna matata!" Well, although the rest of the hike was more like rock climbing than hiking, we finally made it. At the very last bit, I was really struggling. The altitude made my head spin every time I tried to stand up on the rock to climb. But, I figured, no shame in crawling up the mountain, right? As long as I make it!

The sky had begun to lighten and the stars disappear, so we were a little afraid we would miss the sunrise. But, alas, the sun had not risen as we perched ourselves on the icy rock. We signed our names in the "I've climbed Mt. Meru!" book and sat overlooking the incredible scene. Here we were 4500+ meters above sea level and the only thing higher was Kilimanjaro, illuminated by the creeping sun. We watched as the amber sun peaked over the mountain and continued to brighten the morning sky. It was phenomenal. The sunrise over the Serengeti was definitely amazing, but there was something slightly more satisfying to this sunrise. I will never forget that moment.

We'd climbed for 3 days and now it was time to descend. How fun it was to have our adrenaline pumping us down the mountain at a pace more than twice as fast as our ascent! Except, of course, the infrequent ascents, which were absolutely dreadful. We stopped at both camps to eat a bit and rest. But, we continued on. Can you believe we left the top of the mountain at 7 a.m. and got to the bottom at 2:30 p.m.? We were flying! I literally had to jog to keep up at times.

Mt. Meru has overlooked me throughout my 6 weeks in Arusha. From the front porch at Mama Florence's we have a perfect view of the gorgeous mountain. I love sitting out there watching the sun go down. From Shepherd's I have a much closer view of the enormous land mass, seeing the lush green that lines the slopes. And now, after all these weeks of watching the mountain, I have reached the top. What a great way to spend my last weekend. Oh, and I even got a certificate of accomplishment! That one's definitely going on the fridge.