Dispatch from Africa

So 2 months later and I am finally getting around to updating the blog. A synopsis of the last 2 months follows. I completed 4 climbs up Kilimanjaro via the Machame Route from 11/30-12/31. 13 guests in total and all 13 made the summit, one opting to go down only to return the following day and finish in 3 days. A huge 'thanks' goes out to John, Colman, and Killian my local guides that I have been working with and to all the AMG guests for pushing though what one called, 'the hardest thing I have ever done'.

After working with the MIT Sloane School graduate students, I went on Safari to Lake Manyara, Ngorogoro Crater, and the Serengeti. More wildebeests, zebras, and baboons than you could shake a stick at. The highlight had to be watching a female cheetah stalk a group of Thompson's gazelles with 4 of her cubs, mirroring her every move. The hunt was unsuccessful, but according to the park information, 75% of cheetah hunts fail to produce a kill. Watching the top speed of the mother cheetah, was amazing! I have always loved the cheetah because of it's speed and agility, and seeing one in action made the long and hot days in the Range Rover worthwhile.

From the safari, I headed to Uganda with an Irish guy named Ivan, whom I had been on safari with along with Gerry(that's Jerry, but with a 'G'). The 24 hour bus ride to Kampala was horrible, hungover from a late night, I utilized a 1 gallon 'Ziploc' and emptied the contents of my stomach. Once in Kampala, I spent a few days riding around town on 'boda-bodas', little 125cc motorcycles. The preferred mode of taxi in town since they zip in and out of traffic and avoid the jams. After stumbling upon the filming of a local rap video on the shores of Lake Victoria, hilarious, I headed for the town of Jinja. Once there, rafting on the White Nile with it's huge class 4-5 rapids lead to some down time. I took a one day kayak instruction on the upper portion of the Nile, paddling next to sub-merging corrant birds and watching river otters emerge with fish in their mouths. No croc sitings, but I was able to stick my kayak roll in a rapid towards the end of the day, my goal achieved.

On my return to Moshi, Tanzania I found myself on the same over night bus ride. At one particular point in Kenya, there was a burst of AK-47 fire, in which all passengers dropped to the floor in fear of being hit by stray bullets or direct fire, that is except me, who had just woken up from some hard to get sleep. Turns out that, where the bus was stopped is a notorious place for 'robbers' as the local guy sitting in front of me said. I guess that they will often hold up a bus when it slows to go through road construction( you think road construction is slow in the States, try East Africa). The state police had set up a 'sting' and were waiting for the 'robbers' to strike, using buses with people on them as bait. Well after a short, one sided strike by the police, one suspect was killed and one injured according to people in Nairobi when we arrived at 4 am.

So I find myself back in Moshi, waiting for my next climb to start on the 27th. I will have 4 more climbs starting on the 27th of January and wrapping up on the 27th of February. I have plenty of stories, accounts of Kili, Uganda, etc that I am working on. My plan is to have them finished and posted once I return to the States since the next month will be spent almost entirely on Kilimanjaro.

Thanks for all the support and emails. Planning has started for the Trans-America bike ride that will start in September 2009. A new website, charity cause, sponsorship options, and fundraising T-shirt will be forthcoming.

All the best,

Mike