Thanks to everyone who donated and supported my Kilimanjaro expedition, here's an update about the trip....
Wow some adventure!!! I guess I knew that climbing Kilimanjaro would be extreme... I survived the ardurous trekking but became ill just hours before the final ascent. So I didn't get to the top but that was no bad thing. My brother in law made the summit but paid for it with a couple of days of pretty painful recovery. So for me, instead of success at the top, the trip was about my journey up the mountain and raising funds for the Big Issue. Our group raised £60,000 which is going towards homeless people, so thanks for your sponsorship and support! We climbed with the head of fundraising for Big Issue foundation charity and he is an inspiring guy, completely professional and dedicated to alleviating and eliminating homelessness, I'm pleased I did it for the Big Issue.
I've attached some photos, you can see the Kilimanjaro peak behind us, it doesn't look far away, however the last section is many, many times harder than the rest of the climb due to the high altitude ... I lost weight during the trek, half a stone in a week...at the highest point I thought I was dying from cold, sickness, lack of oxygen and utter, utter fatigue, I was so tired!! So, all in, a tough, tough trip but incredibly rewarding in terms of the people I met, the things I saw and the happy memories I have of Tanzania.
The trip taught me that its not about how far up the mountain you get, its about how you get there and who you get there with! And I must say that I'm glad I'm back in the UK at sea-level!
If you would like to know more about this event, or the work that the Big Issue Foundation does, you can visit their website at www.bigissue.org.uk
THANK YOU!!!
David
