A little about both events:
Mt. Kilimanjaro: June 19th-July 6th, 2014. I'm going with a group of 12 others, 13 total in our group. Most of us are from here in Denver, CO. Dr. Jon Kedrowski is a personal friend of mine and is coordinating the trip. I've climbed numerous 14ers with him, and I credit him to teaching me almost everything I know about mountaineering. Link to his website: http://www.jonkeverest.org/About-Jon-Kedrowski.html
The hike will take 6 days, 4 ascending and 2 descending. We'll be taking the Machame Route:
The following week after returning from our hike, we will be going on a 3-day safari. I thought I would try and copy the details from the itinerary, but I couldn't capture all the magnificent details such as it did! From the itinerary:
Day 10: Drive to Serengeti. Full day game drives in Lake Manyara Park Gate A Serengeti. Then, in the late evening drive to and overnight at the hotel - full board.
Day 11: After breakfast, venture into the Serengeti’s wilderness corners for a full day of game viewing in the park. With a picnic lunch beside you, take your leisure while exploring this world heritage site, where earth’s largest concentration of plain game still roams free! In the late evening, go to the Hotel for rest, dinner, and overnight. ON this day we drive to Ngorongoro Crater for a half day game drive inside the crater. This is the best place in Tanzania to see black rhino as well as prides of lion that include the magnificent black-maned males. There are lots of colorful flamingos and a variety of water birds. Other game that you can see include leopard, cheetah, hyena, other members of the antelope family, and small mammals. Later in the afternoon, drive to the Hotel or similar for overnight.
Day 12: The drive from the Highview Hotel to Tarangire National Park takes two hours. This park is spectacular in the dry season when many of the migratory wildlife species come back to the permanent waters of the Tarangire River. Huge herds of wildebeest, zebras, elephants, elands and Oryx gather to stay in Tarangire until the onset of the rain when they migrate again to good grazing areas. In the late afternoon, drive back to the Buffalo Hotel in Moshi.
It still does not seem real for me and probably will not until I am in route to the airport June 19th!
This will be my first time at 19k feet (highest I've been is atop Mt. Elbert, 14,433ft). I am climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro to further my mountaineering career, and also as a personal test. I will see how I manage at 19k, and if all is well, I will plan to continue to higher mountains (20k, 22k… 29k).
Leadville Silver Rush 50 Run: July 13th, 2014. Yes- only 6 days after I return from Africa! However, I will rest up and make do best I can. Along with my mountaineering, ultra running is also a big part of my passion for the outdoors. I've completed numerous half-marathons, two trail marathons, and one 50k (~31miles). After I ran my 50k in October 2013, I was barely sore the next day. This gave me the confidence (and crazy) idea to keep going further.
http://www.leadvilleraceseries.com/run/silverrush50run/
I want to find my limit- my breaking point- and then push past it. I want to develop into the strongest person I can become both physically and mentally….
… and I believe climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro and running 50 miles in Summer 2014 will help out immensly in doing just that.
Check back for updates- I'll post when I can!
“If you want something you’ve never had, you must be willing to do something you’ve never done.” -- Thomas Jefferson
