Mount Kilimanjaro: Up the Mountain, Day 3

Day 3: Rain, Hail, and Prehistoric Trees: To the Lava Tower, and beyond! 

This day is all about acclimatizing! You head up the mountain at a low grade include, then up to Lava Tower, and then down to camp. Everything was off to a great start then the rain started. We fluctuated from about 11,000 feet up to 13, 000 feet then back down to sleep. If you know anything about altitude it's always best to slowly acclimatize and to sleep below the higher elevation of the day. 

When the rain came, it came on hard, and it got very cold. We all geared up and endured our trip to the lava tower. As moved along the terrain definitely began to change, almost all signs of green disappeared and were replaced with black lava rock boulders growing moss that ranging from yellow to orange. 

Orange is my favorite color, so I was totally happy navigating this new,  beautiful landscape. 

The rain wouldn't subside as we continued up, but finally, we reached the Lava Tower. Apparently the Lava Tower is a huge pile of lava rocks that look like a tower....we wouldn't know though because with the rain are the clouds. The mountain regularly clouds up around noon each days. 

Our wonderful porters and cooks quickly set up lunch and before we knew it we were all warmed up with some delicious soup. 

Because it was cold and raining our guides decided it was best for us to continue on from Lava Tower without an actual visit to the tower, which we couldn't see because of the clouds anyways.

Back on our way, we had a little bit of up to do, then head back down to our camp where we would stay for the night. The rain was persistent though and even turned into teeny tiny balls of hail. 

Further down the mountain the rain subsided and we were met with various mountain streams. One in particular let down the mountain revealing a small, yet beautiful valley full of the prehistoric trees! It was so precious and one of my favorite parts of the day. 

We took some photos with the trees and then pole pole'd all the way down to camp!

Tonight's camp was Baranco Camp, where we were even closer to the peak! 

Before dinner our guides had a little surprise for us, they took us to the Baranco Caves. We learned that the guides and porters used to sleep in these caves way back in the day when leading expeditions of the mountain. The caves are super small, but would definitely keep you out of the elements. How many Hikerbabes can you fit in a cave? 

All of them!

Every night before dinner we have tea time, a time to relax. On this evening we were greeted with an outstanding sunset, one like we've never seen before...because we were on the side of a mountain, lol. 

Stay tuned for Day 4, where we climb the Baranco Wall!