Tony on top of the world

Pictured on top of the world is Kilcullen resident Tony Gahan, who recently joined that select group of local people who have climbed Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, the highest free-standing mountain in the world at 5,895 metres.

He reached the top of Uhuru Peak, which is the summit of Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, after a 7-day trek to the top. It only took two days to descend!

The team stayed in camps at various levels during the climb and the last camps were above the level of cloud cover. The final camp was at an altitude of 4,600M and the air at that level was very thin. The final ascent started in darkness at 4am when the temperature was -17degC and the group eventually reached their goal at 12 midday, when it was not much warmer.

The Tanzanian team who accompanied the Irish climbers included a doctor whose services, thankfully, were not needed for anything serious but who did daily checks on blood pressure and pulse rates to ensure that all was well.

The terrain was very rough and stoney and the amazingly helpful porters carried everything on their backs, on their heads, or both. "The porters will do five or six climbs during the season and can support their families for the rest of the year on what they earn doing this," Tony says. "They are very strong, efficient and experienced and even managed to stay very good humoured with everyone."

The leader of the expedition was an Irishman who has climbed Kilimanjaro 30 times. Tony says that while he enjoyed the climb and is very glad that he did it, he has no intention of ever repeating the experience—he is going to stick to local mountains from now on!

This article was first published on the Kilcullen Page of the Kildare Nationalist.