Day 3: Climb to the Shira Plateau

Start: Mti Mkubwa

Finish: Shira 1 camp

Distance: 5 miles

Elevation gain: 2895m to 3505m

Climatic zone: Heath

I'd managed to sleep peacefully in my tent but was woken early by the sounds of birds and monkeys darting through the trees. At 6.30am Ramaa gently tapped my tent saying, "Good morning Amy, welcome to Tanzania!". Saidi had told us the previous day to not set an alarm, claiming "No alarms in Africa" as he wanted us to maxmise our sleep and be woken up in "5 star Tanzanian style". I sleepily unzipped the door and Ramaa poured me a cup of tea as we compared how we'd slept. Today we would continue the gentle climb up the lower slopes of Kilimanjaro progressing from rainforest to heath, as the depleting oxygen levels support less plant life. We ate breakfast of porridge, bread, omelettes and fruits to fuel up for the climb ahead. Saidi burst into the mess tent with a beaming smile as he danced around with his oximeter and orange folder, asking us how we were feeling and completing our morning health check. After breakfast we continued our climb through the jungle, the incline was steeper than the previous day and the path was more rugged - lined with large boulders. Clambering over the obstacle lined trail coupled with the heat and humidity made for a more challenging hike which I really enjoyed.

I chatted to Saidi as we gained height. He's been a safari and Kilimanjaro guide fro 8 years and speaks fluent English, Swahili, French, Spanish and Chinese which was evident as he switched languages as we passed other groups of climbers. His passion for the mountain and his love of nature was clear and I enjoyed all his stories about encounters with animals on safari. The boys chatted with the guides about football and Saidi joked that we will organise a match on the summit - "Tanzania vs England, big final on the roof of Africa!" As we made progress towards camp, the wall of the Western Breach of Kilimanjaro came into view, lined with ice and snow. It was clear that we had transitioned into a different climatic zone, the air already feeling thinner and the dense vegetation of jungle had been replaced with sparser shrubbery and the air had developed a cold bite. Camp came into view and we were grateful for the sight of our orange tents in the distance. The trail had been very dry and dusty so we'd all developed a layer of dust that extended above my knees and had completely changed the colour of my boots. As I headed towards my tent for a rest a porter appeared, took the bag off my back and placed a camping chair next to my tent and a rock in front of it, gesturing me for to place my feet on it. He then proceeded to hit my boots and legs vigorously with a tea towel in an attempt to remove the dust, I glanced opposite over to George who was receiving the same treatment and we both burst out laughing. The porter viewed my laughter as enjoyment so began whacking me harder with the tea towel producing larger clouds of dust as he looked up at me with a wide smile, giggling back at me.

Nasibo and Ramaa prepared us lunch and then Saidi encouraged us to rest before we had an acclimatisation walk to complete. Most groups simply arrive to camp and rest however Saidi was a huge believer in the "climb high, sleep low" mantra so had incorporated extra acclimatisation into our route which would increase our chances of summit success. I rested in the mess tent, drinking tea and chatting to Joey about his time on Mount Kenya while I waited to be summoned for the acclimatisation walk. Saidi bounded into the tent, waving a chicken leg in the air which he seemed to be very pleased about, telling us we have 5 minutes before we leave. We walked on a gentle incline for around an hour with the guides encouraging the "pole pole" approach, everyone was in high spirits and the guides sung, laughed and chatted with us as we walked. One of the most effective methods to prevent acute mountain sickness is to drink 3-5 litres of fluid daily but this leads to constantly needing the toilet on the trail, which in an all male group can be a challenge. Any time we would stop for a break Saidi would suggest a suitable location for a toilet break - for the boys he called it "marking your territory" but for me he referred to it as "picking a flower"! "If you need to pick a flower Amy, this rock is good!" as he pointed to a large boulder I could hide behind. We returned to camp feeling a little tired after the acclimatisation walk, as we had already progressed to 3500m but luckily no one was suffering from any symptoms and everyone's evening oxygen levels were healthy. We ate dinner, played cards and shared stories before climbing into our tents to rest up for another enjoyable day on the mountain.