In about eight weeks Charles Southey will be near to the summit of the world’s largest free standing mountain trekking in temperatures as low as -22°C – is he mad?
Mount Kilimanjaro in northeastern Tanzania reaches 5,895 metres or 19,340 ft. Around 15,000 people attempt to climb the mountain every year and only 40% reach the summit. The temperatures range from over +35°C at the foot of the mountain, to -18°C and -22°C during the night at the summit. It is supposedly one of the most dangerous things a person will do in their lives and there is a reported death rate of 1 in 5,000.
What on earth was I thinking when I signed up to do this?
I keep having to remind myself why I’m actually doing this! It’s all in aid of the dental charity called Bridge2Aid (B2A). B2A is a UK registered charity operating dental and community development programmes in northwestern Tanzania.
B2A’s dental programme works in co-operation with the Tanzanian government to provide dental services, training for personnel and oral health education.
‘Dental caries are a huge issue for people living in developing countries, and Tanzania is no exception. Without access to a dentist or even someone who can safely remove a decayed tooth, Tanzanians face suffering the daily agony of severe toothache or risking injury by seeking unqualified help. Our dental work is helping to safely relieve the pain of hundreds of thousands of people each year through treatment and training programmes for Tanzanian health care workers’ – extract from B2A website.
How dangerous is it to climb Kilimanjaro?
Climbing Kilimanjaro is probably one of the most dangerous things a person would ever do! It is certainly one of the most dangerous things that you can pay to do!
It is reported that during times of normal weather conditions, climbers run a risk of death of under 1 in 5000. The primary holdback on the mountain is altitude sickness. Kilimanjaro is extremely high and it is almost impossible to prepare by training as any exercise under 5,000 metres is not particularly beneficial. Nearly all climbers suffer from some kind of altitude sickness and it is estimated that around 25% suffer symptoms severe enough to bring them back down the mountain immediately. Up to 1 in 100 of all climbers require emergency evacuation.
Kilimanjaro is by no means a walk in the park and is definitely not a laugh a minute but it does promise a life changing experience, which will hopefully allow me to look back on and be proud.
How can you help me?
The aim of this entire trip is to raise as much money as possible for B2A. You can help now by going to my website where you can sponsor me. You will see that I have quite a high target that I need to hit in order to go ahead with the climb.
Your donation could be the reason why I push for those last few hundred metres to reach the summit. Wish me luck and thank you for all of your donations.
