Kath climbs Kilimanjaro

Carb-loading must be every girl’s dream! I get to eat anything high in carbohydrate to build up my stores, to get all the energy I can before I leave. It’s fabulous, having not eaten much bread or pasta in the last little while I get to have whatever takes my fancy (within reason of course).

I have taken over the house, my stuff is everywhere. Deciding what to take is proving quite a task. The bulk of my packing seems to be the massive first aid kit I have assembled. We need everything you could imagine. And I always like to be sure I have enough so I may have gone overboard on the quantities, for example what if I have a headache, not just for a day but for a whole week, and what if I drop some of the headache pills before taking them and lose them, and what if someone else needs to borrow my headache pills, and what if I get stuck on that mountain for an extra 3 weeks with a headache – I will need more pills! Dad always said we take too many pills, but I’d rather be safe than sorry right? So in goes 6 packs of paracetamol (not to mention Neurofen sometimes works better so need to double up on those).

Do I sound paranoid? Well it’s possible I am slightly. Nervousness is kicking in, and I have to take sleeping tea in the evenings these days (ooh I should really pack that too), it helps me sleep at night – lots of valerian.

The poor porters are going to have to carry much of my paranoia on their backs, I am trying to keep that in mind.

So it is exciting and invigorating to know I’m leaving in a couple of days, to brave the streets of Africa. Keep me in your thoughts and feel free to send texts to push me along the road (speaking metaphorically – it’s definitely not a road!).

I’m sure I’ll be back with a load of photos and stories to tell so watch this space…

The countdown is on, 10 days to go, and I’m on the last part of my training regime. I have done the last walk in the Peak District (7 hours of it). Then I will have my last jog (1 hour), and my last 3 gym sessions (1.5 hours each), as well as my last physio appointment.

The boots need to be cleaned and then they need to be waterproofed, the pack needs to be stitched up (after some of the more rough excursions), the batteries need to be charged and the memory cards need to be wiped. The documents need to be copied and kept in a safe place. The US dollars need to be purchased. The medical supplies need to find a safe waterproof place to hide. The last of the washing needs to be done, and the poles need to be cleaned. The last of the dextrose food (high sugar) needs to be bought. The last of the kit needs to be tried out, in the comfort of my own home. The last of my parcels need to arrive in the post and then I need to pack everything into my bag.

Finally the cat needs to be fed then I’m off.

Adrenalin is high, nerves are tingling, and hopefully the rush will stay with me for the climb. The mountain that glitters is calling - rain, hail, wind, snow I will be there, there to experience what this enormous mountain offers, to admire the sunsets, the views, the hot African sun (my Piz Buin SPF 50 is packed) and basically have an extremely fun but extremely hardcore trip.

Slowly but surely getting all my kit together, I hadn’t realised how many little things you need like sleeping bag liner, toenail clippers, tips for the porters, drybags to put everything in so it doesn’t get wet, it’s exhausting just thinking about all the things that need to be packed.

Donations have been coming in too, just a little bit more needed before I hit my target.

I thought I would be amping with the last 2 weeks of training but I think I’m coming down with the flu and am doing everything to fight it off. I feel tired, sore throat etc so training is not at its prime but I’m hanging in there.

I have been allowed a one week rest in training before I leave WAHOO!! to help my muscles recover so they are in tip top condition to be getting out there. Nathan has been a great trainer and has really been the driving force behind getting me this far. Admittedly I’ve been having problems with my left calf muscle and I think a week’s rest will do it loads of good. It will be a proper holiday before I go!

But at the moment I’m just keeping on doing the required exercises, plugging at it day by day. All the good work has been done I just need to sustain it for these last couple of weeks. The strength phase I am doing is an 8 week phase so it’s starting to become less interesting but it’s amazing how much weight you end up lifting. I am doing 110kg leg presses at the moment and reckon I’ll be at 130kg before I finish.

The countdown has begun, bring it on!!

We had fun walking in gale force winds across the Malvern ranges on the weekend. There wasn’t any protection from the wind and we were almost flying away. I managed to get a fabulous sideways hairdo, while the others complained of windburn to one side of their face. Having encountered a baby snake, which I was assured wasn’t poisonous, I began to freak out at every twig and leaf lying on the ground, thinking it might be a snake. They have beady eyes and funny shaped noses, yuck even the little ones are scary. I’m staying in my fantasy land that maybe Africa doesn’t have any dangerous species.

I am getting tired of all this training, but have been told that the final week before I leave I can just rest and relax – can’t wait! Some much needed sleep awaits.