All of the photos from the hike itself:

All of the panoramic photos from throughout the hike:

All of the high dynamic range photos from the hike:

And lastly, here are some photos from the safari that I took in Arusha National Park the day after I got down from Kilimanjaro. I didn't have time for a full on safari, but this was a blast. I saw a great deal of wildlife in only a couple of hours. Be sure to go on some sort of safari before you head home from Africa.

If you would like to see even more, all of the photos from my expedition can be found here.

And hopefully you will be greeted at the bottom by your entire team of porters and staff with a celebration as great as ours was. And thats it for the trip! I will never forget my experiences on the mountain and with the porters, who were all incredible. Without their unrelenting energy and positive attitudes, our team would not have had the success rate it had.

But boy was it worth it. The views were absolutely incredible and the weather was perfect. You may find your group taking a break at Stella Point and yourself wondering whether it is worth going to the actually summit. Views from Stella Point.

Just do it. You will regret it for the rest of your life not making it all the way to the top, and again, if you go slowly, you will be fine. The climb from Stella Point to the actual summit was the only time I was really short of breath. The altitude got to me a little bit at 19,000ft, but that was the only altitude problem I had the entire trip. I was really lucky in this regard, so just take it slow for your own sake when you are up there. Views from the top.

Then you can take a picture like the one above. You have earned it. Catch your breath and smile, because you just made it to the top of the tallest freestanding mountain in the world.

But you aren't done yet! You have to get down off the summit that day as well, but don't worry, its all downhill from there.

Our group descended from the Summit to Millennium Campsite (12,300ft) for the night.  The hike isn't too bad, but it is a little dusty. At Millennium Camp you can buy a cold beer or coke if you like. And boy does a coke taste good. That will likely be the end of your Summit Day. You will never sleep so well again in your life!

The remainder of the day is basically just for resting, acclimation, and getting your gear ready for summit day. Barafu Camp is pretty spectacular in its own right, so be sure to soak in the views.

Pre Summit Preparation

Summit day will be the most challenging day of the trip. It is long, it is cold, you are tired from 5 days of hiking, and it is physically tiring as you will gain almost 4,000ft. You should take the rest of the day to relax and sleep if possible. Our group ended up getting up at 11:30pm, but it is incredibly helpful to try and get a couple of hours of sleep. In terms of gear that you need, you will need your headlamp and poles, and some parts of the trail can seem tricky in the dark. You are also going to want to layer, as it will warm up a great deal once the sun comes out. Your layers will depend on the weather you have. We had perfect weather, so I wore a base layer (underarmor in this case), a mid layer which is just for warmth, and an outer layer for wind (and rain) + warmth. You are also going to need gloves and your cold weather boots, if you brought two different pairs. It also probably wouldn't hurt to slip a hand warmer in both of your gloves and boots if it is comfortable. I did, and my feet and hands were perfect the entire time. We only saw temps in the high 20s, so it wasn't too bad, but just be aware that it can get extremely cold. Also, if you have an ipod, this is a great time to use it. Other than that, it is the best day of the trip! Get ready.

It was a lot like my hometown favorite, Camelback Mountain in Phoenix, Arizona, exactly what I trained on. This was probably the most technically challenging part of the entire expedition, including summit day. Parts of this can get quite interesting if you do not pay attention.

After that, you will hike through a long valley to end your day at Karanga Camp, which once again has incredible views of the valley floor.

We hiked along ridge and through a long narrow valley for most of the day.

This is pretty much an acclimation day, and if you are feeling the altitude, it will hopefully give you a chance to catch up.

The trail can become quite slippery in some places due to the moss that grows virtually everywhere in this transition microclimate, so take care and use your poles if you have them. We camped at Shira Campsite at 12,450ft.

I still felt fantastic at this point, however, some individuals in my group were beginning to feel the altitude, so be sure to take it slow and breathe. Another great tip I can offer is to be sure to look at the stars at night, no matter how tired you may be. There is very little light pollution and the view is incredible. 

There are people hawking souvenirs, other guides assembling their teams, and park officials trying to maintain some semblance of order. It is a sight to see. While your starting point may differ depending on the route you choose, my group hiked up the Machame Route, so we fittingly started from the Machame Gate (6,800ft). It will take about an hour for your guide to find porters for you and sign all of the paperwork required for you to begin hiking. You can’t really rush through this part, as that is just how long it takes. Sit back, relax, and soak in the view.

After that you can start what you have been waiting for, the climb up Kilimanjaro. Regardless of the route you take, your first day’s hike will likely be through thick rainforest on a trail that will vary in its “muddiness” due to changing weather conditions. By the way, the porters are ridiculous. They will exhibit amazing feats of strength throughout the trip, and always with a smile.

You may or may not get above the tree line. We camped a little bit below the tree line at Machame Campsite (9,840ft) which was a beautiful forest area with some great views of the valley below. Keep taking that Diomox, because it only gets higher from here.

Aside from visiting the school and helping out there, the first day was pretty laid back, as we headed back to the hotel after that. The jet lag didn’t hit me too badly because of my great night sleep the previous night, however, this was the time to catch up if you needed it. It was also good to check all of my gear again before heading up the next day and starting the climb. I would highly recommend a transition day at your hotel, in Moshi/Arusha/(wherever you stay) after you arrive and before you climb. It allows you to get everything in order and to recover from any jetlag that you may be suffering from. You should also start taking your Diomox, or whatever altitude medicine you have, if you are going to take it, because you need at least a day of the medicine before it really takes effect.

While this is an obvious point, the farther ahead you book your tickets, the better off you will be. These things can get expensive fast and if you are trying to go via frequent flyer miles, 6 months early is not a bad idea at all.

Starting out in Phoenix, Arizona. I hopped on a 3 hour flight at 5:30am that took me to Minneapolis Saint Paul (MSP) international airport. I had a 5 hour layover that which was kind of nice in that it let me walk around before the next, and significantly longer leg of my journey to Amsterdam.

On my second of three flights that took me from MSP to Amsterdam, I tried to get some sleep in order to adjust to the ten hour time change, but it was tough. This flight clocked in at around 8 hours. Amsterdam airport is a lot of fun to walk around in, and they have a lot of great food that I highly recommend obtaining for the flight to Kilimanjaro.

On the third flight of my journey that took me from Amsterdam to Kilimanjaro, Tanzania via KLM Airlines, it was really hard staying awake through all 8 hours of it, but the good food I brought on from Amsterdam definitely helped. There isn't much at Kilimanjaro Airport, so do not plan on eating upon arrival. You will have to wait until you get to your hotel.

Once you are on the ground, try to be the first off the plane, because passport control can be extremely hectic and confusing. Basically, there will be one or two guys there that will stamp your Tanzania Visa and take your $100 entrance fee (I mean visa processing fee). Couple of tricks to this process, if you are in a group, have one person collect all the money and travel documents, and sneak to the front of the line. They will accept all the papers from one person. The rest of the group can either wait on the side or go through customs to get the bags. The customs officers aren't paying that much attention. You may or may not need your yellow fever proof of vaccination here. I was told that it would be inspected here, but they never asked for it. So just be aware of the possibility and have it handy.

This is where being on a tour does come in handy. Our transportation was already handled for us and we were taken right to our hotel, the Ngurdoto Mountain Lodge, which is an incredibly beautiful hotel right outside of Arusha, the largest nearby city. If you are not on a tour, there were taxi right outside the airport and I assume they will take you to wherever you need to go.

While the journey wasn't bad, the flights were fine and I got a little sleep, it was extremely long, clocking in at over 30 hours of total travel time. Just be aware of this and plan accordingly.

We spent our next day at the Mwereni Integrated School for the Blind, a school KC Summits supports on every expedition.