Eating PB&Js at 15000 ft
and other forms of sustenance on Mt. Kilimanjaro
We begin our ascent at midnight. One by one, we turn on our headlamps and set out in a single file into the black velvet of the night. The darkness obfuscates the arduous path to Uhuru Peak 4000 feet above us, but the occasional twinkle of a headlamp in the distance illuminates the long way we still have to go.
Hours pass, or is it mere minutes? I have lost all sense of time as I shuffle up the steep switchbacks, pausing every three steps and hating every one. I crave oxygen, hydration, energy, and emotional support (in that order), but all seem out of reach as we continue trudging along this stair-stepper of misery.
I feel utterly broken when I see a streak of red on the eastern horizon. We pause at 18,000 feet to catch our breath and take in the glorious sunrise. As if by magic, a porter produces a thermos from his backpack and serves us piping hot cups of ginger tea. I tear into a package of energy gel to rapidly replenish my glycogen levels. For the first time since we set out, I can see the exhausted but determined faces of my hiking companions as we trade encouraging smiles. For the first time since we set out, I feel hope, and it’s this hope that carries me the rest of the way.
It’s been about a week since we summited Mt. Kilimanjaro, and as expected, I’ve been in an introspective mood. Since most of the frivolities of modern urban living were stripped away on our trek, I spent a lot of time contemplating more essential matters like sustenance and the various forms it takes in our lives.
Food is one such form and perhaps the most obvious in the context of this blog. In the past I’ve marveled at how humans have elevated a basic necessity like food into both a science and an art. During our hike I discovered that the converse also holds: one could be as analytical and empirical or as abstract and conceptual with food as they want, but ultimately it must nourish the body.
In this vein, I was reminded to not take the most elemental forms of sustenance for granted from the air we breathe to the water we drink, from the food we eat to the company we keep.
Air
In a way, our entire journey was one long breathing exercise. I learned to reconnect with my breath and rely on it to power my body and mind. When I felt anxious, I used physiological sighs to help slow my heart rate. When I felt tinges of altitude sickness, I employed pressure breathing to circulate oxygen more efficiently. As we climbed ever higher and breathing became an increasingly voluntary act, I gained a newfound appreciation for the life-sustaining force of oxygen.
Water
During the hike, we were advised to drink 3-4 liters of water per day in order to stay hydrated and fend off altitude sickness. All of the water that we drank came from melting glaciers at the peak of the mountain. Water is another life-giving force that is easy to take for granted, as if it will always be available. However, I recently read that the glaciers on Mt. Kilimanjaro, which have been around for over 10,000 years, will likely face extinction within a matter of decades. This begs the question: “If the glaciers disappear, where will hikers get their water from? Will a trek like ours be possible for future generations?”
Food
One of the symptoms of altitude sickness that I experienced was loss of appetite, which reduced eating to a chore. Forget culture and community and artistic expression - I was forced to view food at its basest level: calories and macronutrients. After exalting food for representing so much more than mere sustenance, it felt strange to force dry white toast and millet porridge down my unwilling throat for that express purpose. I realized that it was a privilege to ascribe greater significance to food than as a basic means of survival.
That’s not to say that we weren’t incredibly privileged. When we could stomach it, we feasted on fried chicken and vegetable stews, fresh salads and heaps of rice and pasta. The most memorable dish of the entire trek was a comforting classic with a soulful twist: fried peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. It was crispy on the outside, creamy and sweet on the inside, and only made more delicious by the fact that our kitchen crew accompanied us to 15,000 feet so that we could eat it hot and fresh. The sandwiches fed my tired and aching body, while the kind gesture nourished my weary soul.
In fact, most of our meals left us energized on multiple levels. After long days of hiking single file, a beautiful tradition emerged as we sat facing each other at the dinner table. We shared personal moments of awe and gratitude from the day, along with what we were looking forward to the next day. Even when food was stripped to its barest form as fuel for our bodies, it still served as a conduit for conversation and a gateway to gratitude.
Community
I cannot emphasize enough how much I cherished the company of my fellow hikers, day in and day out, as we undertook this monumental endeavor together. I relied heavily on our camaraderie, our shared sense of amazement and accomplishment and, at times, agony, our collective determination and stamina to keep pushing when I wanted to quit. I truly don’t know if I could have made it if I didn’t have my built-in community to lean on.
I am certain that none of us would have made it without our indomitable crew of thirty (four guides, four kitchen staff, 21 porters, and one toilet engineer) that worked tirelessly to support our trek. It takes a village, and we would be nowhere without the physical and emotional support of our crew to bolster us every step of the way.
On our final day together, we gathered to celebrate a successful hike with song and dance. As I looked from smiling face to smiling face, I felt like I’d known these people for years rather than a single week. The moment was tinged with melancholy as it dawned on me that this may be the last time I would be seeing a lot of these folks. Instead, I chose to focus on the immense feeling of gratitude for the eight wonderful days we had just shared. Together, we had accomplished a most remarkable feat, and I knew I would carry that with me for the rest of my life.
A very special thank you to Topi Adventures for taking us to the top of Africa! I cannot recommend them enough if you’re interested in climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro. Follow along on their Instagram and to check out their website for more details.
Amazing journey my girl and certainly a proven VPW!