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February 14 – 3rd Dispatch: Everyone Crosses the Baranco
It’s still February 14th, Valentine’s Day, and you won’t believe where we are now. We are on top the great Baranco. The group that is here with me now is Nancy, the big man and the little man (Loren and Matt), Matthew and Heather, Cherry and Sheena plus twelve Berg Adventures guides and porters. There is quite a little crew of us up here. We are the last team to cross the great Baranco today; the other members are all ahead. In fact it was hours ago now when I was way over with some of this group and some others over on the other side of the valley, many kilometers away and a few hundred meters lower than this that I heard over the radio first, but also without the radio across the valley the rhythmic singing of the group that was working up the Baranco with Brock.
As a mountaineer I’ve looked into a lot of adventurer’s eyes over the years and I’ve seen a lot of peoples' love for the high country and the mountains, their passion. Brock is strapped to his trailrider and not able to express much by most people’s standards but when I look at his expressions here on this great mountain I see some of the strongest passion for climbing and adventure on this place that I’ve ever seen from anyone, anywhere in the world, it’s really an amazing thing.
The entire team here is behind this and we’re all behind one another. The group of folks I just mentioned who are with me here today, but over the radio we’ve kept up with all the rest of the team, all 43 climbers from British Columbia. As you know I’m bragging that we are all still here. We have a little ways to go into camp right now but everybody’s doing great. Our adventure every step of the way is just worth its own effort and its own reward. We are thinking of everybody back home but of course we’re still dreaming of higher places, Uhuru Peak even, in the days to come. All Text, Images and Audio Files © Berg Adventures International 2006 |
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Listen to Audio of Wally's Call (.wav)
Ask somebody some day who has been to Kilimanjaro about the day they crossed the Baranco, it’s the prettiest day of walking or trekking on Kilimanjaro. This trail we just did today is stunning. It’s really gorgeous. It is the steepest walking we will do on this trip. So Brock’s trailrider team as they came over was a big effort. 