Most Inspirational Moment
I had expected summitting to watch the sunrise at Gilmans Point to be the highlight of my trip; however the reality didn't quite match up to the expectation. I did suffer from the altitude on the way to the summit but with a lot of encouragement from a wonderful tent/room mate and the superb guide Shaban I did make it to Gilmans Point. After the long trek back down and resting in my now lovely warm tent toasting in the suns rays I thought about what I'd just achieved- reaching Gilmans and asked myself if I was disappointed in not reaching Uhuru Point. I realised that reaching the summit had become inconsequential as the whole experience of Tanzinia, the trek, the guides, porters and spending time with a group of wonderful people all setting out with the same goal in mind was a highlight that I won't be forgetting.
Thoughts on Group Leader
Our group leader Abraham was terrific. He was a strong leader that we all felt completely confident with. He was very well respected by his team & I was grateful to have his expertise on the first trek of this kind I had undertaken. He was extremely observant of both trekkers and porters/guides and looked for opportunities to strengthen the skills of the guides at all times. We were exceptionally lucky to have not only Abraham but a fantastic team of guides and assistant guides in Seraphin, Nico, Shaban, Nemis, Julius and Marwa who I'm sure will develop into confident group leaders.
Advice for Potential Travellers
Don't underestimate the cold, it was freezing. Even in the hotel it was chilly as seemed to be misty a lot of the time. I didn't take a spare pair of trousers for the evenings around camp and really wished I'd had some comfy warm trackies. Do invest in decent warm base layers, it'll be money well spent! Experienced group trekkers dressed up for the last night at the hotel and were unrecognisable from their dusty trekking gear- a nice touch, I'll definitely be dressed to the nines on my last night next time!!