Kilimanjaro Gear Questions

Another idea. I took about a dozen dryer sheets and stuffed them in my shoes and my clothes stuff sack to help keep things a little fresher along the way. It's a bit of an unnecessary extravagance, but since the dryer sheets weighed less than one ounce all told, it wasn't a big deal.

I've just been up ther - 26 Sept - 2 Oct - a few things to add

1. DIAMOX!!
   Besides the wickable layers, fleeces, boots & sleeping bags, Diamox is probably your best friend - Just make sure you get at least 4 liters of water each day while on it. It greatly minimises your chances of altitude sickness. Either way, after all the preparation and expense, you might as well try as hard as possible to keep the evil altitude sickness at bay.

2. Good rain gear.
   Don't skimp on this! As someone else said getting wet could totaly destroy your chances of summitting. Yes, rain gear is sxpensive, but you'll be thankful in the end. See if you can't rent it or borrow from someone at a hiking club in your home town.

3. Gard's blog - link in one of the replies above.
   Read it more than 5 times before going, each time I would find out something useful - the vitamin c & cold medication info really came in handy. It's a pretty comprehensive blog.

What do others think about Diamox? I wasn't planning on getting any to take along. Bad move?

Diamox (acetazolamide)? Some people love it, some people don't need it. I LOVE DIAMOX (I'm a pharmacist). Some people need it more than others. One of my friends went to Cusco, Peru (10,000 feet) without Diamox, and she was sick sick sick. For Kilimanjaro, she took Diamox, and she made it up to 17,000 feet before getting sick. As you know, Kili is 19,341, so no, she did not summit. But she made it much farther than she would've otherwise.
And it's cheap!!! You only need 125mg twice daily, starting a day before you start the climb..

Think of Diamox as extra insurance. Great if you need it, but no harm if you don't. I don't know if it gave me any advantage, I didn't have any Altitude problems at all. I plan on doing a few more high altitude hikes and will definately be taking it on all my trips.
I didn't need the loo as much as I thought I would, but then again, with 5 liters of water a day, you do still end up going a lot more than you would otherwise.

Hi...can you elaborate on the rain gear please? Are we talking gortex over multiple layers or will my simple rain coat work as well (over layers of course)? Also, re the camelback...did the freezing problem only occur on Summit night/day? I was thinking about only bringing one nalgene with me and using the camelback...bad idea? I am travelling for 2 months and trying to avoid bringing my entire gear closet so picking carefully! Thanks.

Without knowing what your simple rain coat is like...it's hard to say. But the way I think of rain coats: no. The coat does not have to be goretex per se, but should be waterproof, and you could put a coat of Nikwax on, for extra repellant. You should also have rain proof pants, your jacket should have a hood, and your gloves and shoes should be waterproof. Gaiters are a great way to add some resistant properties, and a set of thin or fleece gloves that can go inside your waterproof ones would be ideal. I wore my gloves all day on day 3 because the wind on the saddle is biting. However, I would not have wanted to wear my waterproof gloves because one characteristic of waterproof clothing is that they aren't usually breathable and you can get really sweaty. I have a very thin rain jacket and pants and wore them over other layers (thermals, regular pants, etc.). They are also windproof, so I wore them on days 3 and 4 even though there was no rain, because it really helped keep me warmer.

As for the camelbak, yes it's only summit night/day, although it's always a great idea to blow the water back in your tube (and good practice, so you don't forget at the critical time!). I also brought only one nalgene (standard size) and one camelbak with me and it was perfectly fine.

Thanks for the quick response. My raincoat is thin but it has kept me dry during the Colorado afternoon showers...it packs smaller than my goretex shell which is why I am debating. Everything else on your list I have covered. Thanks much for your input!

Happy Holidays

If you climb during the rainy season, it's not a bad idea to back up your rain gear with a poncho.

Whether it's adviced to start on Diamox differs per country of where you get advice. As for where I'm from they advice it to take it with you to treat signs of altitude sickness if you get them. I've brought them just in case. I didn't use them and made it to the top. So consult some medic about that in your home country that has knowledge about alltitude sickness. However, I do advice to get to know something about this alltitude sickness it served us more than well!!

As a tip we brought al the gear we thought we needed and shipped it from Dar es Salaam to home (took about six weeks). It's so worth to have good gear. As for the socks and shoes. I've invested big time in them and even with take all necessary measures it took about 2 months to have the sensibility in all my toes.
Good luck and have fun.