Page 33 - 20145 AMA Spring

was going to be rainy in this strange eco-system where we were getting ever higher and ever colder. “There’s no guarantee of good weather here at any time” said Lt Col Ayres; “If you want a guarantee – buy a toaster!” it was exclaimed... Day 2 and onwards fared better though, with dry days and stunning scenery.
The attitude started to tell as we exceeded 4000 metres and arrived at Mintos camp, a large and flat site. It felt as if I was breathing through a straw all day as my lungs demanded oxygen on the slow and steady ascent. I passed the time counting the porters as they effortlessly loped past us, carrying our main rucksacks, their own kit and any group camp kit they were given – those guys earned their money!
Day 5 was summit day Point Lenena (4,985m) on Mount Kenya. I don’t think many of us slept soundly the night before – we had a big step into the unknown with the most challenging terrain in our way. By this time, ice was a constant companion overnight as water could freeze in personal bottles and the inside of every tent was coated in a crisp layer by dawn. An early start took us at a really slow speed and all of us made the summit, with numerous breaks by midday. A fantastic feat and a personal triumph; the highest I’d been previously was the 4500 metre Ras Deshan in Ethiopia. Time to descend to Camp Leki North now though – a tortuous descent much of it through a scree (gravel) field. I think I was on my backside more times than Todd Carty before we finally arrived to a welcome lunch in a grassy valley. Day 6 took us out to the National Park trail-head and transport to a lodge for a good meal, timely admin and a real bed.
Time for a bit of R+R. Ol Pegeta Game Reserve provided the venue for a 2 day bush safari and camp. A leisurely time where the objective was to drive around at random, observe and photograph any of the wild animals that roam freely over the hundreds of acres of bush-land. Early mornings and late afternoons provided the best times to spot the numerous animals that typified Africa including elephant, giraffe, rhinos, zebra, wildebeest, hippo, gazelle, ostrich and baboons. We weren’t disappointed; many of us took more photos here than anywhere else. After 4 game drives though, everyone was quietly anxious that we hadn’t come across any lions. We mentioned it in evening conversation to Daniel our Kenyan driver, but Lt Col Ayres once again said “there’s no guarantee”. We hoped against hope that our last game drive before breakfast the following day would answer our prayers – and literally before we’d
driven 10 minutes on it, a whole pride of fourteen lions straddled the track we were driving down! We could have sworn that Daniel had pre-positioned them – a great spectacle!
The final part of our Kenyan venture was an important one – assistance to build and decorate a local village school close to James Savage’s Sagana venture grounds. Tasks included mixing cement for paths, drainage ditches and wall rendering along with wood shuttering, wall and mural painting. We had 4 days to complete what the previous expedition group had started; a tall order, but all we set out to do was achieved, and well appreciated by the locals with huge attendance at a handover ceremony. The Cadets and adults were treated to dancing by the school pupils and thankful speeches by local dignitaries.
The flight home arrived all too quickly with many memories of a fantastic venture to carry with us. Would I do it again in the future?...
Sure I would – but there is strong expeditions from many very countrywide. So, as
there’s no guarantee!
competition for places on these able Mountain Leaders someone once said...
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