Adventures · Kilimanjaro

Seven chapters, from the road to the roof of Africa — 5,895 metres of thin air, moorland, rock walls, and one unforgettable dawn.

The ascent · seven stages

PrologueThe Road to Kilimanjaro

Scaling New Heights

Seven months of training, and one rule: no plan B.

The climb was won long before Tanzania. Training began in February 2022 — 5 a.m. walks that hardened into runs seven days a week, building to a brutal week on Aburi Mountain in Accra (August 1–7): 144 kilometres covered and 3,738 metres of ascent. Along the way came Afadjato, West Africa's highest peak — six nights under canvas and ten summits — and a 21-kilometre marathon that September. Michael arrived at the roof of Africa with a body that had already been through pain, swelling, and dangerous cold, and a single rule for the seven days ahead: no plan B.

Scaling New Heights — Kilimanjaro
Day 1Machame Camp · 3,000 m

Embracing Kili's Chill

Through the rainforest, into the thin air.

The expedition set off from Machame Base Camp at 12:45 p.m. on 23 September 2022, climbing through the dense rainforest zone beneath towering, cathedral-like trees. Around two-thirds of the way in, the altitude announced itself — breath turning shallow and deliberate — yet the group reached Machame Camp ahead of schedule by 5:45 p.m. Night brought its own trials: stomach cramps, aching knees, a wave of dizziness. Michael steadied himself on the one thing the mountain gave freely that night — a sky thick with stars, a breathtaking reminder of why he'd come.

Embracing Kili's Chill — Kilimanjaro
Day 2Shira Camp · 3,850 m

Conquering the Moorland Challenge

One step at a time, and the summit stops mattering.

Leaving Machame Camp at 8:38 a.m., the team crossed into the moorland zone — rocky, dust-blown, relentlessly uphill. Hours of grinding ascent were rewarded by Shira Camp at 2:28 p.m., then a short acclimatisation hike to a nearby hill to sleep higher than they had climbed. The lesson of the day was quiet but decisive: stop staring at the distant summit and give everything to the next single step. It was the mindset that would carry the rest of the mountain.

Conquering the Moorland Challenge — Kilimanjaro
Day 3Lava Tower · 4,600 m → Barranco · 3,900 m

Battling the Elements

Climb high, sleep low — through snow and thinning air.

The hardest day yet. From Shira Camp at 8:23 a.m., the group pushed across bare moorland to Lava Tower at 4,600 metres by 12:58 p.m., then dropped to Barranco Camp at 3,900 metres — climbing high and sleeping low to let the body adapt. The descent turned treacherous: driving snow, sodden ground, biting cold, and visibility that shrank to a few metres of careful footing. Running on no sleep, a dull headache and heartburn, Michael reframed the suffering — the mountain was testing resilience and determination as much as legs.

Battling the Elements — Kilimanjaro
Day 4Barranco Wall · 4,200 m

Conquering the Kissing Wall

Hand over hand up the route's most feared stretch.

Barranco Camp gave way at 9:27 a.m. to the day's centrepiece: the Barranco Wall, and its notorious 'Kissing Wall,' where climbers press flat to the rock and move left foot first, then right, along holds razor-sharp and unforgiving. Beyond it, moorland faded into high desert under poor visibility until the team reached Karanga Hut at 2:07 p.m. Rain hammered the camp that evening; spent and without appetite, Michael took dinner alone in his tent — conserving whatever he had left for the summit.

Conquering the Kissing Wall — Kilimanjaro
Day 5Barafu Camp · 4,673 m

Preparing for the Ultimate Challenge

Pole pole — slowly, slowly — to the final base camp.

A shorter but pointed march to Barafu Camp, the last base before the top — mixed terrain and steep rock covered in under three hours against a typical four. Here the whole climb narrowed to a single Swahili mantra: pole pole, slowly slowly, guarding every reserve of energy. Altitude pressed against his skull as the team rested and took a hot meal. The summit attempt would begin at midnight — what Michael would come to call the most challenging thing he had ever done.

Preparing for the Ultimate Challenge — Kilimanjaro
SummitUhuru Peak · 5,895 m

Conquering Kilimanjaro's Pinnacle

Dawn at Stella Point, and the roof of Africa.

It nearly ended before it began — a racing heart and unstable oxygen readings almost grounded him, until three hours of controlled breathing brought the numbers back. The team set out at midnight into the dark and cold, Michael fighting the weight of his own pack until a guide helped shoulder the load. At 6:08 a.m. they crested Stella Point exactly as the sun broke the horizon — a breathtaking spectacle — then walked the final ridge to Uhuru Peak, 5,895 metres, the highest point in Africa. Exhaustion stole his balance on the way down and a guide steadied him to base camp, but the summit was already his.

Conquering Kilimanjaro's Pinnacle — Kilimanjaro
What the mountain taught meAbout Michael