Meru Cindercone
Africa’s highest peak looms large to my left; a full moon dangles amidst the stars to my right. I am breathless, but not because I am hiking at altitude.
Below me, the earth changes constantly. I can’t see exactly what lies under my feet, but the light of the moon reveals the jagged outline of the surrounding terrain. We crawl slowly along a spiny crater rim laden with sharp drop offs and steep cliffs. The heart of Mt. Meru – an eerie volcanic ash cone – lies just below the rim’s edge.
St. Jude School
Despite being surrounded by such majesty, the vision of Pascal’s home – a tiny, peaceful hut made of mud – does not leave my mind for the entire climb. Pascal is a 13 year old student at the School of St. Jude’s in Arusha, Tanzania. I had the privilege of visiting his home the day before beginning to ascend Meru, the second peak in our three week challenge. His mother, who is raising eight children on her own, greeted me with open arms and a smile. With the help of a translator, I sat with this Maasai woman and chatted as if we were long time friends. We learned about each other while drinking a cup of the best tea I have ever tasted. Even though she doesn’t have food to spare, she placed a stack of buttered bread large enough to feed fifteen people in front of me and urged me to eat. The generosity, dedication and kindness of this little boy and his family make most challenges, including walking up a mountain, seem pretty easy.
Mt. Meru
Spurred by the spirit of this family and the others at St. Jude’s, our entire team pushed past doubt and pain to make the steep and scenic climb. We reached Meru’s summit just in time for Earth’s daily light show. The views were so spectacular that it was difficult to focus in just one direction. Mount Kilimanjaro (our next peak of the challenge) stood strong in front of us, glowing from the fiery sunrise. Behind us, the moon dropped to the other side of the world and Mt. Meru cast its shadow over the lush lands below.
The team climbs
We descended the mountain in exactly the same way we climbed it, however, the light of day revealed a completely new and wild landscape. I couldn’t help looking over my shoulder a time or two (or a thousand) at Kili to take in its overwhelming beauty and to ask this incredible peak to be kind to us this week. We’re heading there tomorrow and will climb for health and those living with HIV so stay tuned…
Chris Kassar is sharing her climbing adventure with 3 Peaks 3 Weeks during January 2011. 3 Peaks 3 Weeks is an annual all-female climbing event to summit three of Africa’s highest peaks in three weeks, raising money and awareness for three issues; education, environment and health. The organization hopes to empower women to make a positive social impact for education, environment and health issues worldwide by participating in global adventure challenges. Since 2007, 33 women have completed the 3 Peaks 3 Weeks Africa Challenge (with a further 24 set for January 2011 and January 2012). Since inception, 3 Peaks 3 Weeks has distributed over USD $600,000 to three non-profit organizations in East Africa. You can view the profiles of all the 2011 team on the 3 Peaks website.
In addition to the excellent weekly posts from Chris, daily (almost) postings and pictures, are at: 3peaks3weeks.com/2011. In that same site, in the links section, click on Facebook to pick up additional video clips and photo albums.
Help the 3 Peaks 3 Weeks Team reach their goal — make a donation to their cause.
