Day 3, 1st July, Kibo hut 4700m

Today we get up earlier than normal as we want to arrive at Kibo Hut in good time. Its the usual breakfast and we set off about 7:30am, its a beautiful sunny day and everyone's feeling good.
We've been very lucky with the weather so far - my waterproofs haven't come out of my pack once.

The first part of the walk is fairly easy and soon the long path to Kibo Hut stretches out before us. It really doesn't look too far away and not that steep either - after all its only 300m higher than Mawenzi Tarn right?

After the first couple of hours,exhaustion sets in. My legs are heavy, every step becomes harder. It doesn't help that the Kili summit is right in front of us




We finally arrive at Kibo Hut some 6 and a half hours after we set out. Kibo is quite a big campsite with a mixture of huts and tents to accommodate all the walkers from the other routes who also congregate here before the summit attempt.





We're not allowed to rest for long as lunch is about to be served. Everyone is talking around what we'll be wearing that night. After lunch we're allowed to lie down for a few hours and even though I cant sleep at all, I can feel the energy starting to flow back into my body. Eventually I feel strong enough to sit up and start sorting out my gear for that night.

At 5:30pm we're called to dinner. No-one's really hungry but we all force down some food as we know what lies ahead.

After dinner, our guides brief us on the summit attempt so we know what to wear and what to take with us. By now its getting really cold and we're all wearing our down jackets even in the tent.

We're all back in our tents by 6:30pm to try and get some rest. I get up at 10:30pm to go to the toilet and for to be ready for the 11pm tea.
I get dressed, and put on nearly everything in my bag. 2 wool base layer, long sleeve polyester base layer, t-shirt, 2 long sleeve micro fleece thermal, windproof fleece jacket and down jacket. On the bottom I have 2 thermal leggings and waterproof trousers. I have a beanie, balaclava and headtorch on my head and heavy weight ski gloves on my hands.

In my bag I pack spare gloves, snacks and water.

About 11:30pm we gather in the mess tent for tea and biscuits. At midnight our guides assemble us outside the tent, ready to head off.... We all hugged and wished good luck to each other; it was the day!!!!