I chose Crisis as my charity when I signed up in December 2009. I now have a double challenge. In memory of my mother who passed away on 14 July 2010 (after a period of illness), for each £1 I raise for crisis through this challenge, I have pledged to donate 20% of my own money to pancreatic cancer reseach fund. Therefore, please help me in, what is now not just a physical challenge, but an emotional one too.

With your help and support, I will be able to help two charities, So please dig deep and sponsor me generously, as much as you can afford. You only have to click a few keys on your keyboard, I’ll do the rest……

Sumita xx

Update 10 October 2010:

I did it! I climbed Mount Kilimanjaro at 5,895 metres. And with the help of many of you, so far have raised an amazing £4,032 for Crisis and as I have pledged to donate 20% of my own money to the pancreatic cancer research fund, then so far you have helped me to raise £806 for this too….. I hope to increase this over the next few months now that people know I have actually achieved the goal……..... access to my photos are through http://www.pixum.co.uk/album/albumLogin/5181580 password is Kili.

 

To say it was very difficult would be an understatement. This was to be an extremely hard challenge (physically, mentally and emotionally) for me. There is also so much more about this particular challenge that is difficult to explain. There were times when it was physically painful...... at times, I wasn’t sure I would reach the summit….. but this challenge has taught me that I have an awful lot of focus, determination and perseverance than I had ever realised.

 

The year so far had already been difficult and challenging … but by early September, I was looking forward to getting out there to pursue this goal that I had set for myself… although perhaps with a little trepidation... Having trained quite hard over the six months before to get my fitness levels up, I had also been trying to prepare myself mentally and emotionally for the last few months. But was it going to be enough to get me through the next 10 days. Apart from the altitude and the thought of camping out in the mountains in extreme conditions, I was going out to a new country with almost a complete bunch of strangers to attempt to climb the highest mountain in Africa, what on earth was I doing?

 

The route that I had chosen, the Lemosho route, was a longer route than most but taking us through the more remote valleys, ridges and desert plateaus of the Kilimanjaro…… the views were spectacular, the sunrises and sunsets were breathtaking…. Sitting outside having breakfast with a view of Mt Kilimanjaro in the background is something that I had only ever imagined……

 

We were lucky that we had hardly any rain, however, once out of the rainforest and as we climbed higher, the temperature steadily dropped. At night times, it went into the minus degrees zone and we would wake up to frost on the outside of the tents and on the ground… a down sleeping bag and a good mattress to sleep on were essential…… thermals, fleeces, warm hats and gloves were a must…imagine having to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night in those conditions!!!..... which I often had to do….brrrrr…….

 

Each day’s trekking took us higher and higher up Kilimanjaro with lots of steep climbs and lots of scrambling up and down (something which I am not fond of at all). I soon found out that, although I thought I had trained hard, I had not trained hard enough. After the first couple of days, as each day’s trekking got harder/steeper and we climbed to higher altitudes, I found myself struggling not just with the breathing but also with the climbing…many a time over those few days I wondered what the hell I was doing and why I was doing it…… as each walk became physically challenging, then it was important to keep a rein on my mental and emotional health…..

 

What kept me going on many a day of long treks were the guides who were with us each day. They provided such positive and motivational support….. Certainly on a number of days, I would not have managed to get up or down without the help of the guides.  There were a number of times when I just wanted to pack it in and go home.I am not sure what kept me going. The summit night especially was physically and mentally hard with 10 hours of walking starting out at midnight in subzero temperatures…….if it wasn’t for the guides, I would not have reached the summit, and one of them was always at my side pushing me on with their gentle words and encouragement.

 

What also kept me going? Along the way, I kept thinking about the fantastic support that I had from so many of you. With all that faith that people had in me, I wanted to remain determined not to let anyone down.

 

I cried when I reached the summit. It had been a long hard few months; I had lost so much in the last few months and yet through this experience had also gained so much too…. even though it was hard, it was also exciting, awesome, inspirational..... to say that I have reached the top of one of the world's highest mountains.....wow!