Specific Information About Your Kilimanjaro Trek & Safari

Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro Mount Kilimanjaro, perhaps more than any other mountain in the world, fires the imagination of active travelers. There are larger mountains but Kilimanjaro excels in beauty, in part because it is located in Africa and rises as a sole sentinel from the plains below, with wild animals on its lower flanks. Mount Kilimanjaro is also more accessible to regular travelers than most mountains its size. It requires no actual climbing or technical skills and most people use an outstanding support staff of guides, cooks, and porters. Given a good pair of lungs and calves, regular people can conquer the mountain and achieve something special. For many, the idea of “having climbed Mount Kilimanjaro” is enough to get them to go. However, the actual climb itself can be just as rewarding. Gazing at the expanses below you during the day, watching the stars at night, and sharing stories around the dinner table are all memorable experiences that make the trip (or at least most of it) fun. In fact, most of the Kilimanjaro trek is made up of pleasant days of moderate trekking you will certainly enjoy. Having said that, one should not underestimate the mountain. At 19,330 feet above sea level the lack of oxygen makes everything more difficult. How well you adjust can easily determine whether you make it to the top or not. In addition, the actual summit day is long and arduous – both up and then back down. Success may depend in part on your will and desire to reach the summit. About the Climb One of the reasons climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro is so accessible to regular people is because of the support system provided by our local staff. We have guides, cooks, and porters to make our life much easier. This allows us both to enjoy the actual hiking more during the day and to have a more luxurious camping experience at night. This truly is camping made easy. Our local staff will set up a dining tent each evening, cook our meals, and take care of the dishes. They provide and carry all the gear. You are not required to do anything in camp but can certainly help if you wish. The reactions of previous trip members to the trek’s difficulty are wildly diverse. Some participants find it moderate for two reasons: they carry only a daypack while hiking and cover a reasonable distance most days. On the other end of the spectrum, some participants will find the climb to be the most strenuous thing they have ever done. We gain significant altitude, hike for eight days in a row (with one partial rest day), and sleep in a tent for seven nights, all things that can tax you physically. Our hiking time varies by day from a minimum of four hours to 14 hours on summit day. Most days, however, average six or seven hours of hiking. Obviously, this depends on each individual’s speed, ability and fitness level! Visit our website to download a detailed trip description and day-by-day itinerary for this trip. Our favorite way to think of the trek is this. You have the option to live your life in two ways. One way is to remove all difficulties and keep yourself comfortable. You can achieve a very happy and steady life this way. The other method is to put yourself in new situations that might stretch the boundaries of your comfort level. While you can experience periods of difficulty by living such a life, we feel the higher highs more than compensate you for your efforts. Climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro allows you to experience life to the fullest.

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Specific Information About Your Kilimanjaro Trek & Tanzania Safari

Training for the Trip Even if you are already in good shape, you should plan to physically prepare in advance for the trip. For one reason, you will simply enjoy the climb more if you are in better shape. Realistically, you should start getting in shape at least two to three months before the trip. Working out a few times the week before will likely only tire you out! We specifically recommend you have at least two aspects in your Kilimanjaro training program. First, you should include exercise three or more times per week that raises your heart rate. For example, playing tennis or walking is good if you play hard enough or walk briskly enough to get out of breath. Running, hiking, and working out on an exercise machine at the gym are even better. Second, we recommend including some sort of exercise that mimics the act of hiking uphill. Hiking, working out on a stair climbing machine or carrying a daypack with significant weight (add water bottles or phone books) up and down flights of stairs is fantastic preparation. Simply finding a local hill and walking up and down it with a small daypack is a good start. The Altitude & Dehydration The altitude is the wild card factor for how difficult the trip will be for you. Tens of thousands of people reach the top of Kilimanjaro each year but a good 1/3 of those attempting the mountain do not summit. The reason in most cases is altitude sickness. “Altitude sickness” is either High Altitude Pulmonary Edema (HAPE) or High Altitude Cerebral Edema (HACE). Both can be deadly but generally only if someone continues to ascend when experiencing problems. Mild symptoms of altitude sickness can occur at 10,000 feet and above and, even with proper acclimatization, you will likely experience symptoms such as fatigue, breathlessness, sleeplessness, headaches, or slight nausea on our Kilimanjaro climb. The single best way to acclimatize is to gradually increase your elevation. We have chosen the Lemosho Route because it has a more gradual ascent over seven days than the popular Marangu route done in five days. We also include a rest day in the middle of the ascent to further your acclimatization process. Our route choice alone increases your chance of summiting and avoiding severe altitude sickness. Your guides will also discuss this frequently en route. If you do experience symptoms of altitude sickness you should let your guide know immediately. Also very important is to hydrate properly (you dehydrate more quickly at altitude). We recommend you drink about four to five liters of fluid each day. Water is best, but fruit juices and soups are a good supplement. The air is very dry above 12,000 feet so avoid panting and try to breathe through your nose. Control sweating by wearing layers and pacing yourself. You should carry your own water bottle at all times and sip fluids frequently. Monitor your urine; output should be at least 1.5 liters per day and the urine should be clear. Trek staff will boil, filter and refill your empty water bottles for you every day on the trek. Kilimanjaro Weather Arusha, the gateway town from which our climbs are organized, is located at approximately 4,600 feet above sea level. Due to its proximity to the equator, Mount Kilimanjaro does not experience wide temperature changes from season to season (see chart below for average temps and rainfall by month for Arusha). Instead, the temperatures on Mount Kilimanjaro are determined more so by the altitude and time of day. However, temperatures will decrease as you gain altitude on Mt. Kilimanjaro; the journey from the gate to the peak is like traveling from the equator to Antarctica in a matter of days. The range begins with the Page 2 of 6 TANZANIA PRE-DEPARTURE INFORMATION Copyright Zephyr Adventures

Specific Information About Your Kilimanjaro Trek & Tanzania Safari warm, dry plains, ascends through a wide belt of wet tropical forest, through zones with generally decreasing temperatures and rainfall, to the summit where there is permanent ice and below freezing temperatures. Expect warm days and cool evenings during the initial trek days and be prepared for sub-freezing (and possibly sub-zero) temperatures on the final summit climb. Due to Mt. Kilimanjaro’s great height, the mountain creates its own weather and so even if you are traveling during the dry season, be prepared for rain in addition to strong winds.

Arusha Weather (from GoAfrica.com) MONTH PRECIP MAX MIN MONTH PRECIP MAX MIN (inches) (Fahrenheit) Fahrenheit) (inches) (Fahrenheit) Fahrenheit) January 2.7 82 57 July 0.3 72 54 February 3.2 84 57 August 0.3 73 55 March 5.7 82 59 September 0.3 77 54 April 9.1 77 61 October 1 81 57 May 3.4 73 59 November 4.9 81 59 June 0.7 72 55 December 3 81 57

Evacuation It is possible you will suffer an injury on the trail, simply not be fit enough to complete the trek, or suffer altitude problems severe enough to require you to return to a lower elevation. (Symptoms of altitude will normally subside when a person descends to a suitable elevation and so this is almost always our first recourse for more severe symptoms.) We hope none of this happens but always need to be prepared! If you are not able to complete the trek, you will simply have to turn around or (in severe circumstances) be carried out. We will send one or more of the local staff with you back on the trail (or down a different trail depending on where on the mountain we are). The local might or might not speak English, as we need to keep our bilingual guides with the group, but will be qualified to get you to our hotel in Arusha. In the event of evacuation, you are responsible for all costs including transportation, hotels, and meals while you are away from your group. Please see information on Trip, Medical, and Evacuation Insurance in the separate Travel Information document. We expect everyone to be able to stay on the mountain for the entire trek. However, it is possible not everyone in your group will actually reach the summit, since the last day is the most difficult and most likely time to feel the effects of the altitude. Please realize our local guide is in charge and it will ultimately be the guide’s decision on whether or not you will need to turn around and descend. The decision to descend can be made because of your condition, and in some circumstances, because of the weather. The Safari If you are joining us for both the climb and the safari, you are essentially getting two entirely different vacations in one trip. A safari in Africa is one of the most amazing experiences you will ever have and for many travelers is worth the trip to Africa by itself. We visit three national parks on our five-day safari: the Tarangire, the Serengeti, and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area. The Tarangire is a convenient halfway stop on the way to the Serengeti and, while not as well known, is worth a visit in its own right. The Serengeti is the most famous game reserve in the world, Page 3 of 6 TANZANIA PRE-DEPARTURE INFORMATION Copyright Zephyr Adventures

Specific Information About Your Kilimanjaro Trek & Tanzania Safari primarily for the Great Migration of up to 1.5 million animals that follow the rains. The Ngorongoro Conservation Area, in addition to having a very cool name, is packed with animals in a small, unusual space – the inside of an old volcano. Remember Tanzania is a big place, so seeing three parks does require extensive driving. Safaris in Africa are, for the most part, driving safaris. We have seven-passenger Land Rover type vehicles that allow you to stand up and view animals directly from an opening in the roof. You will be amazed at the breadth of wildlife you see and our ability to go right up to big animals such as lions. You simply would not see as much on foot as you do in a vehicle. If it is allowed by the park rangers at the time, we will arrange an optional pre-morning bush walk in the Tarangire National Park, where you will see big animals. It is not possible to do bush walks in the Serengeti. We may also be able to arrange a visit to the Olduvai Gorge, part of the Great Rift Valley and one of the most important archeological digs in the world, made famous by Louis and Mary Leakey. Our human-ish ancestors lived here 1.9 million years ago and you will learn about this in a short walk down into the gorge (dependent on whether a museum archeologist is available at the time of our visit). The typical safari experience includes two drives per day with downtime in between. Because of this, the accommodations we have are important. We have tried to arrange a variety of accommodations and stay in a small luxury tent-camp resort, a hotel, and camp in the Serengeti in luxury mobile tented camps. Even the camping is of high quality, with semi-permanent tents and cots. If you join us for the safari after your Kilimanjaro trek (which we highly recommend you do!), Day 1 of the safari is the same day as Day 10 of the trek. We reserve the right to alter this itinerary slightly to take advantage of migration patterns at different times of year. Visit our website to download a detailed trip description and day-by-day itinerary for this trip. Tipping As it is in US restaurants, tipping while climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro and on safari has gone beyond the rewarding of good service to being essentially mandatory. You might feel most comfortable seeing it for what it is – a way to augment the meager wages of the locals who will be so important to making your trip great. We can help to facilitate this tipping but you can expect to tip approximately $300 - $350 per traveler (preferably in US Dollars) for your local staff (porters, cooks, guides and driver) on the climb and another $50 per person on the safari. While this seems like a lot, remember you will have four to five Tanzanian staff members accompanying the group for each traveler! It is much easier for the group to tip together, contributing to a tip pool and perhaps having a “thank you ceremony” on the last morning of the trek (remember that you will need to pack this money with you on the trek) or safari. We can cover this in more detail on your pre-trip conference call. Another common practice is to leave gear with your Tanzanian staff members at the end of a trip. This is not at all obligatory and you should only consider this if you are planning to part with a piece of your clothing or equipment anyway. Quality outdoor gear such as down jackets, wind shells, sunglasses, boots, pants, hats and gloves will be appreciated as a gift. The Food Tanzania has more than 120 different ethnic groups, as well as subpopulations of Asian and European origins, all of whom influence their cuisine. Sweet biscuits called mandazi are served at breakfast and for snacks. Page 4 of 6 TANZANIA PRE-DEPARTURE INFORMATION Copyright Zephyr Adventures

Specific Information About Your Kilimanjaro Trek & Tanzania Safari

Carbohydrates make up the bulk of any traditional meal. Common grains include sorghum, cassava and plantain. If meat is available, it likely to be goat, beef or pork and added to a stew, or served over rice or another grain. Beans, plantains and coconut milk are commonly found in dishes, and nuts and curry powder are used as flavoring. Vegetable such as cabbage, greens, sweet potatoes, squash and pumpkin might accompany meat dishes. Fresh fruit such as coconut and pineapple is sweetened with honey and served for dessert. If you are lucky enough to participate in a feast, be aware that you will be expected to eat as much as possible and leave full! Food courses arrive in a bowl and are worked into a solid ball with the fingers, then eaten with the right (or “pure”) hand. On your trek, your typical meals might include coffee, tea, porridge, fruits, fruit juice, scrambled eggs/omelet, sausage, toast, margarine, honey and jam for breakfast. For lunch you might expect hot tea, coffee, chips, sandwiches, biscuits, pancakes with honey or jam, and fruits. And for dinner, soup, cooked meat or vegetarian meal (these include chicken/beef with rice, sliced fresh carrots and green beans, mashed potatoes, and salads), fruits, and fruit juice, and variety of hot drinks. Your cook will be happy to accommodate dietary restrictions and/or allergies if we know this ahead of time. On the safari, your food will range from local to international food, prepared by skilled and trained chefs. It is generally recommended to drink only bottled water, which is readily available, everywhere. There are no restrictions on the sale and consumption of alcoholic drinks in East Africa. There are plenty of imported beers, wines and spirits in many places. Hotels The hotels we use are of medium to high quality. We prefer more typical hotels to increase our contact with the local culture, to reduce the price of the tour, and to allow us to select locally owned hotels where our dollars support the local economy. The hotels we use will be clean, have hot water, and generally have English-speaking staff. At the same time, they may be basic and not perhaps what you are used to at home. If you have any complaints with your hotel room, please speak with the hotel staff. If that does not solve the issue, please let your guides know. Pre-Trip Conference Call For all treks, we recommend participating in our planned pre-trip conference call with a Zephyr representative approximately a month prior to your departure. This is optional, but many people find it useful to be able to ask questions. Geography Tanzania is located on the east coast of Africa in the southern half of the country and has the Indian Ocean to the east; Zambia, Mozambique and Malawi to the south; Zaire, and to the West and and to the North. The landscape ranges from mountains with active volcanoes, to large lakes (such as Lake Victoria, the largest lake in the African continent and the supposed headwaters of the Nile), national parks (such as the Serengeti, which has the greatest concentration of migratory animals in the world), and of course, Africa's highest point, Mount Kilimanjaro. Two other famous geological features within the Serengeti are the Olduvai Gorge, where the Leakey’s discovered evidence of the earliest ancestors of Homo sapiens, and the 20-mile-wide volcanic Ngorongoro Crater, home to an extraordinary concentration and diversity of wildlife.

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Specific Information About Your Kilimanjaro Trek & Tanzania Safari

On Tanzania's east coast is its largest city, Dar es Salaam, which also leads one to Zanzibar, the lush island off the coast and known for its lovely beaches and spices.

History, People and Language (Adapted from Geographia.com and Wikipedia.com) The history of human habitation in Tanzania goes back almost two million years, and the fossils found at Olduvai Gorge by Louis and Mary Leakey now stand among the most important artifacts of the origins of our species. Artifacts of later Paleolithic cultures have also been found in Tanzania. There is evidence that communities along the Tanzanian coast were engaging in overseas trade by the beginning of the first millennium AD. By 900 AD those communities had attracted immigrants from India as well as from southwest Asia, and direct trade extended as far as China. When the Portuguese arrived at the end of the 15th century, they found a major trade center at Kilwa Kisiwani, which they promptly subjugated and then sacked. The Portuguese were expelled from the region in 1698 with the help of Omani Arabs. The Omani dynasty replaced the region's leaders in 1741, and they proceeded to further develop trade. It was during this time that Zanzibar gained its legendary status as a center for the ivory and slave trade, becoming in 1841 the capital city of the sultan of Oman. In Tanzania's interior, at about the same time, the cattle-grazing Maasai migrated south from Kenya into central Tanzania. Soon afterward the great age of European exploration of the African continent began, and with it came colonial domination. Tanzania fell under German control in 1886, but was handed over to Britain after WWI. Present day Tanzania is the result of a merger between the mainland (previously Tanganyika) and Zanzibar in 1964, after both had gained independence. Tanzania has like many African nations experienced considerable strife since independence, and its economy is extremely weak. However, political stability does appear to have been established in recent years. Over 100 different tribal languages are spoken in Tanzania, but none of them is spoken by a large majority. Swahili and English are the official languages of Tanzania. Swahili is considered the unifying language of the country between tribes and English provides Tanzanians the ability to participate in the global economy and culture. Writing About Your Experience We sometimes get questions from customers on writing a travel story about the trip. Because traveling in Tanzania is such a unique experience, your trip tale is truly a newsworthy event. If you ever wanted to embark on a career in travel writing, now is your chance! You are mostly likely to get a travel story printed with your local newspaper. Newspapers get most of their news and stories from unsolicited sources (like you). Call or email us to find out if we have been in contact with your local paper’s Travel Editor. Another option is to write for a magazine. If you would like to try to write for a magazine, let us know. We can provide suggestions or contacts. For information on travel writing see www.travelwriters.com . Remember to take good photos!

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