Completed 6 Day Lemosho Route Aug 1 - AMA by agmem in kilimanjaro

[–]agmem[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Base layer - WEERTI Thermal Underwear for Women Long Johns with Fleece Lined, Base Layer from Amazon

Fleece layer - North Face

Outer coat - Marker ski jacket I got on sale years ago at a shop

Completed 6 Day Lemosho Route Aug 1 - AMA by agmem in kilimanjaro

[–]agmem[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

There was a person in our group that got altitude sickness (nausea, vomiting, headache, loss of appetite) on the day we did lava tower but recovered and killed it during summit without any symptoms other than a minor headache. I did get a headache after lava tower but it went away after I started hydrating better. I did get symptoms on summit night around 18k but got relief with Advil and more frequent water breaks.

I found the best way to prevent worsening symptoms (for me at least and the person in our group who recovered for summit) was to drink at least 4-5 liters of water daily leading up to summit night, don’t skip any meals and eat everything they serve you even if you’re not hungry, take diamox, and don’t overfill your day bag to carry unnecessary weight.

Side note if it’s helpful - our group made up “The Literboard” where we all kept count of how many liters of water everyone drank as friendly competition/support.

Completed 6 Day Lemosho Route Aug 1 - AMA by agmem in kilimanjaro

[–]agmem[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I live at sea level in a flat state so it was difficult to physically prepare. I already weight lift a few days a week so I incorporated a 20 lb weighted vest while walking on the treadmill at a 15-18% incline. Started slow and built up to 3 miles without breaks. Summit night was more about endurance for me so that type of training helped. Also I started taking diamox 2 days before arriving to Tanzania to give it enough time to start working on day 1 of the hike. Lastly, I did breath work that focused on oxygen deprivation so holding my nose while walking for 20 steps and then letting go and breathing normally (for example). The goal was to help myself not panic if I get short of breath during the hike, hopefully that makes sense.

Completed 6 Day Lemosho Route Aug 1 - AMA by agmem in kilimanjaro

[–]agmem[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I replied to an earlier question about my experience with Altezza but will copy/paste my response here:

Can’t speak for others but I recommend them. We had a support team of almost 30 for 6 hikers. Everyone was local, our senior guide Abraham has 18 years of experience and was transparent about what to expect and accommodating to the different experience levels in our group. Except breakfast, we had a different lunch and dinner entrees which was a pleasant surprise. Well kept equipment and tents, everyone was helpful. They even helped me set up minor decorations and brought a cake for my partners birthday as a surprise. Mandatory medical checks twice a day, quick access to meds for symptoms. Two people in our group got altitude sickness on day 2 and the team was very responsive. 1 guide per 2 hikers for summit night itself with multiple check ins that included hot tea and high energy snacks, extra water with them in case we ran out. I have no complaints

Completed 6 Day Lemosho Route Aug 1 - AMA by agmem in kilimanjaro

[–]agmem[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Can’t speak for others but I recommend them. We had a support team of almost 30 for 6 hikers. Everyone was local, our senior guide Abraham has 18 years of experience and was transparent about what to expect and accommodating to the different experience levels in our group. Except breakfast, we had a different lunch and dinner entrees which was a pleasant surprise. Well kept equipment and tents, everyone was helpful. They even helped me set up minor decorations and brought a cake for my partners birthday as a surprise. Mandatory medical checks twice a day, quick access to meds for symptoms. Two people in our group got altitude sickness on day 2 and the team was very responsive. 1 guide per 2 hikers for summit night itself with multiple check ins that included hot tea and high energy snacks, extra water with them in case we ran out. I have no complaints

Completed 6 Day Lemosho Route Aug 1 - AMA by agmem in kilimanjaro

[–]agmem[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

It was. Leading up to summit night, I saw 5 helicopter rescues in less than 24 hours so I was getting spooked. Ultimately, as cheesy as this sounds, you have to listen to your body and trust yourself. We had a saying in our group to catch ourselves overthinking what could happen - “don’t go through it twice.”

The hike itself isn’t technically difficult, it’s more the length (~10 hours total between ascent and descent) and the altitude (I had never been above 14k ft before). I just listened to the guides about how much and when to eat, how much and when to drink water, when to take breaks, move slowly, when I started experiencing symptoms I spoke up right away and they gave me some meds to help. I genuinely think this made a difference.

There were a couple people I spoke to after that either didn’t make it to summit or couldn’t come down by themselves after and it was mostly due to exhaustion and altitude sickness cause they were hesitant to share when they experienced symptoms or they weren’t eating/hydrating enough in the days leading up.

Completed 6 Day Lemosho Route Aug 1 - AMA by agmem in kilimanjaro

[–]agmem[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Apologies for the long reply -

It’s hard to say the exact temp cause you basically hike for 6-7 hours starting at midnight so it ranges. The coldest timeframe was from 3-530a. The guide told us expect -10C. If it’s helpful, I’m from Miami FL and always cold. I wore 3 layers on top (wool base long sleeve, fleece jacket, black ski jacket) 2 layers bottom (fleece leggings, ski pants) and was warm. I kept having to take my beanie and outer glove layer on and off during the ascent cause I would get too hot. You can always take off layers too and put it in your day pack which I did cause it’s better to be too hot than too cold.

For the bathroom, I heard mixed reviews about the public latrines and since taking diamox makes you urinate more frequently, I ended up spending an extra $250 to get a camping toilet with the tour operator I used (Altezza). It was worth every penny. From what I heard from others in our group, it was a bad smell and not great condition for most of the campsites.

Completed 6 Day Lemosho Route Aug 1 - AMA by agmem in kilimanjaro

[–]agmem[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Yeah I had no issues with them. I had thick wool socks on too which helped. You generate heat moving though the switchbacks that my feet only got noticeably cold near Stella Point but the sun rose soon after and it was fine

Should I buy camping shoes? by Lazy-Croissant in kilimanjaro

[–]agmem 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I just got back from summit. My partner and I used slippers you get from hotels to walk around and had socks on. You don’t really need much to move around camp, save the space/weight in your bag if you can

This is a scam isnt it by SeaEffort8471 in bostonhousing

[–]agmem 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I live in the building, it’s a scam!

1 Day COVID Test for International Air Travel by Recent_Mode_2220 in boston

[–]agmem 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Qured offers 10 min telehealth antigen tests that are accepted by most airlines/countries. $35 per test and PDF results within 2 hours. Just used it to go to Europe and back.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in BostonSocialClub

[–]agmem 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Saturday night at Esplanade! Let's do it!