February 18, 2012
IMG climbers at Uhuru Point, the Roof of Africa! (Photo by Adam Angel)
Craig John called in from the summit of Kilimanjaro. 100% to the top. Nice work team! They will descend to their forest camp at 10,000′ and spend one more night on the mountain before wrapping this thing up. Tonight, we can almost guarantee one of the best night’s sleep they’ll ever have! Congratulations to the whole team.
February 17, 2012
Craig John just called in from our high camp at Barafu on Kilimanjaro. They had a little snow this afternoon, but are moving into clearing weather. Everyone is doing well and settling in for a few hours of sleep before heading to the summit. Wake at 11, walk at 12, step onto the crater rim as the sun rises. Perfect.
Adam Angel
IMG climbers heading to our high camp at Barafu, Kilimanjaro. (Photo by Adam Angel)
February 16, 2012
Craig John called in this morning from Karanga to report that the team is doing great, and that the rain continues to hold off. So far so good. Tomorrow will be a short day to high camp at Barafu, and then it’s “game” time.
Adam Angel
Karanga Camp, Kilimanjaro. (Photo by Adam Angel)
February 15, 2012
Barranco Camp on Kilimanjaro (Photo: Adam Angel)
All is well at Barranco Camp on Kilimanjaro. Craig John reports that they’ve finally climbed above the rain, and the weather is shaping up nicely. Tomorrow they’ll ascend the “sporty” and fun Barranco wall before traversing underneath the spectacular southern glaciers. For now it’s time to get a good sleep in one of the prettiest camps on the planet!
Adam Angel
February 14, 2012
The path to Shira Camp gains altitude quickly. Today the team ascended in light rain, but into clearing skies. Tomorrow they’ll tackle one of the longer days up around Lava Tower and back down to Baranco Camp. Looking good…
Adam Angel
IMG Climbers ascend the steep trail to Shira Camp, Kilimanjaro. (Photo by Adam Angel)
IMG Climbers on the rainforest approach to Machame Camp, Kilimanajaro. (Photo by Adam Angel)
February 13, 2012
Craig John called in today from Machame Camp on Kilimanjaro. After two dry and cold climbs Craig reports that the rains have returned. The entire team is doing great and is happy to have day one in the history books. There is a good chance they will climb above the rain tomorrow, which is always nice. The change in weather might also signal warmer temperatures for summit day. That’s a long way off though; one day at a time.
Adam Angel
February 12, 2012
Cruising the market in Moshi
Another IMG Kili team has safely arrived in Moshi to begin our third climb of the season. Once again Craig John is leading the way. If you haven’t been following our climbs on Kili this year, this will be Craig’s 21st summit. Today the team toured the local market, visited with our friends at the Kilimanjaro Porter’s Assistance Project, and packed their duffles for the climb. Tomorrow they’ll head up to the Machame gate to start the journey to the top.
After months of preparation it always feels good to start putting one foot in front of the other on the trail. Stay tuned to the blog for updates!
Adam Angel
February 10, 2012
IMG Kilimanjaro guide Craig John said goodbye to his team at the airport last night, and headed back to Moshi for a well-deserved rest day before his third and final Kili trip this season. We asked Craig to send us a short retrospective after his 20th Kili trip:
“I was sitting in my living room in Olympia, WA back in November 1995 when the phone rang. It was Eric. He said “hey CJ, do you want to go to Africa in January?” That first trip was an eye opener. First off, part of the group was delayed by a couple of days because of a huge snow storm on the east coast that forced tons of flights to be cancelled. To deal with that, we flip flopped the program and did the safari first and the climb after the rest of the group got there. It rained every day except for the day we went to the summit. I was surprised by how cold it was on the roof of Africa….here on the equator. It was incredibly satisfying to finally stand there on the summit and be in a place that I had only seen pictures of. Those shots I got from summit of the sun coming up behind Mawenzi, Kilimanjaro’s other summit, still bring back great memories for me. Back then, we descended by the Marangu route, which was a long way down: all the way from Uhuru Peak to Gillman’s Point to the Kibo huts, and then on to the Horombo Huts for the night. It’s now 2012 and last Saturday I reached the summit of Kilimanjaro for the 20th time along with eight others in our group. We had a great climb. It was cold and a bit windy, but the sun coming up behind Mawenzi still touched and warmed a place inside me that brings back that first climb. It is always satisfying to me when the people with me marvel at that sunrise just as I did 20 climbs ago. It has been my privilege to work with the great local guides from the Kilimanjaro area, the wonderful staff from the hotel, great IMG customers, and the other guides from IMG. Tomorrow my next Kili group arrives and climb number 21 will be underway….the numbers aren’t important except for looking back to remember who I was with, on the roof of Africa. So here’s to starting on the next 20 climbs….wait a minute…what did I just say? “
Craig John
IMG Climbers reaching Stella Point as the sun rises. (Photo by Adam Angel)
Long Time IMG Guide, Craig John
February 7, 2012
Craig John called on the sat phone to report that the team is having a great time on their safari. Today they saw five leopards and a rhino in the Serengeti, which is quite unusual. The team has also been enjoying our luxury safari camp “in the bush”. This morning Craig said he had a hyena outside his tent! Among the evening toasts made by the team has been for Craig’s 20th successful Kilimanjaro climb (out of 20 attempts). Way to go Craig! I remember the Craig’s very first Kili trip, as my assistant guide, many moons ago. Since then, Craig has been to the top of Africa in a variety of months, with many people, in many different weather conditions. He will be the first to tell you that every trip is different, and Kilimanjaro always seems to deliver some sort of surprise along the way. Tomorrow the team is off to Ngorongoro Crater via Olduvai Gorge, for their final day/night on safari, before heading back to civilization.
Eric Simonson
Rhino. (Photo by Adam Angel)
Cheetah on Serengeti (Photo by Adam Angel)
February 6, 2012
We just heard from Craig John and the team on safari. They are enjoying some well deserved R&R! They flew to Serengeti and are basing out of our private camp for two nights. From there, they’ll move to another private camp in Ngorongoro. The wildlife viewing and weather has been very good. No doubt they’re going to bring some great pictures home!
Adam Angel
Cheetah getting ready to move in on its lunch, Serengeti. (Photo by Adam Angel)