Lava Tower

Day 3
Shira Camp (3810m) - Lava Tower (4630m) - Barranco Camp (3980m)

This was our 'acclimatisation day' - it involved trekking up to a high altitude but then descending back down to lower altitude to sleep, giving our bodies a chance to get used to the altitude.

It was a long, tough day. There was no scrambling like the day before, rather solid walking for 8+ hours.

The way up to Lava Tower was pretty steep, and the terrain underfoot was quite loose - I kept slipping back down. But I was still keeping good pace at the front (it was today that the guides told us to go 'pole pole' - slowly slowly, as if you ascend too quickly then altitude sickness is more likely to occur.

Once we'd reached Lava Tower I started getting a mild headache - much like the rest of the group. I wasn't too worried though, and we began our descent back to camp. This seemed to take forever, and felt so demotivating, undoing all the work of getting up to Lava Tower. There were a couple of very steep bits coming down, I decided to go on my bum down some of the rocks just to be on the safe side.

My headache got worse the further down we went - which confused me. Surely it'd get better? Everyone else's headaches seemed to be getting better. By the time we got to camp I was a mess - I broke down in tears and hid inside my tent, not wanting to talk to anyone. My headache was unbearable and I felt like I was going to vomit. A girl I had been sharing a tent with soon came and looked after me - she made me drink some dioralyte mix (rehydration salts) and told me to try and sleep before tea. I couldn't sleep so just rested, then at dinner I tried to eat as much as I could. After this I felt absolutely fine - no headache, no wanting to be sick. It just disappeared!

I tried out some night photography again, but soon found it too cold to be outside, so went to bed.

This blip captures the dominance that is Kilimanjaro - it almost haunts you during the day.