Weekend Photos: Mt. Kenya, Part 2

Today we are continuing our 7-day circumambulation of Mt. Kenya.

The other posts from my Africa trip: Arusha, Tarangire National Park, South Serengeti Part 1, South Serengeti Part 2,  the rest of the Serengeti tour,  Ngorogoro Crater,  Mt. Meru, and Mt. Kenya, Part 1

The fourth day of our round-the-mountain hike we woke to find that the winds that had plagued us the previous day hadn't died in the night. That wasn't really news: I'd had to get up at 2 a.m. to re-secure tent lines which had pulled out in the fierce gusts.

Our dining tent had been dismantled the night before. But the cook tent, dismayingly, was a mess of broken poles and ripped nylon. And none of the staff--ours or those of the other party camped next to us--was to be found.

Despite the wind, it was a beautiful morning.

I had a pretty good hunch we'd find our crew up at the hut--after all, that heap of collapsed tentage was their "bunkhouse." And eventually our guide, Nicholas, crawled out of his tent, which had been so collapsed I assumed he, too, had headed for better shelter. 

Soon porters began appearing on the trail from Shipton Hut, and we all migrated up there to have breakfast somewhere out of the wind. Fierce gusts kept blowing open the door of the hut, sending swirls of dust over our table.

Shipton Hut

We started on as soon as we'd eaten, with winds showing no sign of abating. Our guide informed us that we'd be staying in the hut at the next site, rather than camping, as our porters now had no shelter and the winds were beyond anything Nicholas had experienced on the mountain at that time of year.

Despite the wind, the day's hike--over Hausberg Col and then up and over a second col past Arthur's Seat to Two Tarns--was stunningly beautiful. Once again leaving the main trekking route, we hiked without seeing other parties.

Note the wisps of cloud getting ripped to shreds as they blow by!

From Hausberg Col we dropped to the left-hand lake (Hausberg Tarn), before climbing to the left-hand gap on the far ridge.

Looking back from the col by Arthur's Seat. You can just make out the path on the left edge of the grey section where we descended to the lakes.

We would drop and climb yet a bit more before we were done, making this something like a 3 pass day, though none were major climbs.

The uppermost of the Two Tarns (there is an official campsite there; it would certainly have been uninhabitable that day, as the wind gusts did not abate). You can see the remnant of the Tyndall Glacier, which as recently as the 1940s came down nearly to the lake.

Most of the way down and happy to see the hut!

By the time we were settled in at the hut we had high hopes that the weather was blowing on through and we'd have a good day for our summit shot on Pt. Lenana. We shared the hut with a pair of northern European hikers (can't recall what country they were from) who were on their way down, and said it had been painfully windy on the summit!

3 1/2 miles, 1650', 1800' down. Hausberg Col was just over 15,000', explaining why such relatively short miles and climbs felt colossal.

 

Summit Day
On day 5 we woke at 3 a.m., a more merciful hour than that at which we started up Mt. Meru but still a cold and uninspiring hour. Still less inspiring was the wind-blown drizzle that had moved in, despite the stunning display of stars I'd seen at 11 p.m. Nonetheless, hopeful (if not confident) that conditions would improve, we started out with our guide, Nicholas, and one of the porters as back-up.

As we climbed in the darkness and the rain I have no photos from the morning. Suffice to say that it continued to rain, and the wind did not relent. At one point, struggling not to be blown over by a fierce gust, I looked to the porter who was keeping tabs on me (I admit to lagging a bit behind the guys), I realized he'd be of no help: he was already on his knees!

Wet and cold, losing feeling in hands and feet, we pushed on as there was no closer haven than the Austrian hut below the peak, the standard jumping-off point for those climbing Batian and Nelion. We were not amused to find, just before we reached the hut, that we'd climbed above the freezing line. The rain was now forming a rind of ice over all the rocks, and progress became a nerve-wracking creep over the slick boulders. The sight of the Austrian hut (15,700') was unquestionably the most beautiful thing ever. 

It wasn't exactly warm in the hut, but it was dry, out of the wind, and warmer than outside. The other occupants, a Russian pair waiting out the weather for a summit attempt (the real summit) kindly shared their tea while Nicholas and our porter worked to get us food and drink.

My nephew shot this photo of Tom and me trying to get warm, with all our wet gear dripping around the room.

Once we were thawed, and the temperature outside had risen enough that the ice, too, had thawed, we declared victory. There was no point in going on for the summit--it would continue to be icy up there, and the odds of getting any photos appeared something less than zero. Our porters had gone past, ensuring we'd have a camp to retreat to on the other side, so we started down.

Starting out in our "improved" conditions. I envied my nephew, coordinated enough to hike over the rocks with hands in pockets rather than on poles.

A brief hole in the clouds made us wonder if we'd made the right decision, but what it revealed of our peak confirmed we didn't want to be up there. Our guide had been visibly relieved we didn't want to push for the summit, which made us feel better.

Pt. Lenana with fresh snow and ice.

The clouds soon closed in again, with light rain continuing to fall for an hour or so.

It was good that the trail was pretty clear and occasionally even marked, as visibility was minimal.

Eventually the clouds began to lift for real, and we dropped through a cleft in the cliffs to find Lake Michaelson below us--our camp for the night. I was plenty tired of being damp.

Descending alongside the tumbling cascade.

The sun broke through as we approached camp, out tents were set up, and we were able to retreat into our private greenhouses to get warm and dry at last.

Lk. Michaelson camp, looking back up at the gap we descended.

Gear explosion. Even my pack is hung up to dry.

We enjoyed a beautiful moonrise, followed after a decent sleep, by this sunrise.

4.9 miles, 1940' up, 2650' down.

Our next-to-last day began with a stiff climb up from the lake. I'd sort of expected to follow the river down, but later views of the gorge if takes showed why we were up on the ridge instead.

Midway in our last climb.

Looking back at the lake. You can see that the river falls off into an impressive gorge on the left.

Some kind of penstemon. My plant app was out of its depth in Kenya and Tanzania, seldom able to give a positive ID and at one point identifying a baobab tree as a moose.

Savoring views of the peaks as we turn away. Looked like our Russian climber friends might have actually had a shot at the summit.

An aster, and views down into the lowlands.

We reached Lake Ellis for a late lunch. My efforts to speed things up by suggesting they let us make our own PB&J sandwiches resulted in a) them making us far too many sandwiches, and b) them still making us all the usual cooked foods. At least I got something to eat a little sooner.

Enjoying outdoor tea-time, as the weather was pleasant again.

A room with a view.

5 miles, 1000' up, 2600' down.

The final day of our trip needed an early start. We were to meet our safari guide at the gate at 10 a.m. (more or less--this is all on Africa time, of course). Early starts were by this time completely our norm, and not difficult when you go to bed at dark (bearing in mind that at the equator the night and day are equal in length).

Heading down while sunrise still tints the sky.

An uneventful hike took us to the Chogoria Gate. To our delight, all the connections were made smoothly, and we were off on the next segment of our adventure!

Hard to believe that little bump on the ridge is the huge mountain we were just on.

4 3/4 miles, 1650' down (and a few minor uphill steps)

Stay tuned for more safari photos!

©Rebecca M. Douglass, 2024
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