Seven Days To The Summit - Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro

Though I climbed Kili a few months ago, I only recently had time to write about it! This is the first of a 7-part series on my adventure to the top of the mountain. Enjoy!

Day 1: Where it all begins

We awake in our hotel rested, prepared, and ready to begin our climb up Mount Kilimanjaro. After a very big breakfast the bus is loaded up and we’re off. We won’t see hot water, indoor plumbing, or a real bed again for seven days. The slow and winding road to Rongai Gate - where we will begin our ascent - is lined with one-room homes made of corrugated metal. Barefoot children play while their mothers talk in earnest about events of the day. This journey offers an incredible reminder as to how fortunate we are to have the opportunity of climbing this very big mountain in support of an amazing charity.


Three hours later, we are at the gate. While our bags are weighed and distributed to porters (for each person that climbs Kili there is on average 4 more people that serve a supporting role in the form of guides, cooks, tent experts, and bag porters) we eat another large energy-high meal of bread, eggs, chicken, meat, salad, chips, and fresh fruit. You need all the energy you can muster to make it to the top. Lunch completed and our 3 liters of daily water stuffed into daypacks (you need 4 liters per day to stay hydrated at that elevation), we take a quick “before” photo and finally get on our way.

The day’s trekking winds through tall trees and forest land just slightly upward at all times. Our pace is set for us by the guides - something we are endlessly thankful for. “Pole Pole,” they will come to tell us regularly. “Slowly Slowly.” This isn’t a sprint, it’s a marathon. The 25-degree heat slowly fades away as we climb higher and higher. Thankfully our first day of trekking is only three hours and we reach camp at 5:30pm just as the sun is coming down.

After signing in (a task that must be completed each evening) we find our already pitched tents, set up home, put on a few more layers, and ready for dinner. Each meal is taken in our mess tent - a large one-room space that quickly becomes synonymous with force-feeding (the guides make sure we eat every last bite), incredibly open conversations, and laughing until you cry. By 8pm we are all completely exhausted and retire to our tents for some much-desired sleep.

5 hours, 27 Degrees, a whole lot of wall

We awoke to another day of brilliant sunshine ready to attack our final day on the wall with incredible vigor; our final push if this Inspired Adventure in support of HRC.




Today was no easy trek. In an attempt to miss the crowds, we hiked up to the wall via a long, winding, and fairly difficult stretch of traffic that bobbed and weaved through the forest. My goodness was it hot! At 27 degrees this was most certainly the highest temperature we had come across. Combine that with the arrival of a thick, sticky air and our challenge went from difficult to extremely challenging.








Thankfully, we were tough. I mean really tough. From Michael to Paul, Francis to Trish, and Claudia too, we pulled up trousers, chugged our hydralyte and got up the mountain!







Our reward at the top: sweeping views of the snake-like Great Wall crawling along the ridge and stretching as far as the eye could see in every direction. It is the only place I have ever been that is absolutely impossible to capture in a photo. It's grandiosity, it's splendor, and it's mystery is just too big for a lens. In the end we had renamed it the "Super Amazing, Totally Unbelievable, Fantastic, Wonderful, Awe-Inspiring Wall."




We finished the day in a local village with a feast fit for about 20 people. Thankfully, we brought our appetite.

--

Kyle Taylor

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Location:Mutianyu Rd,Beijing,China

Travel With Meaning. Doing It For Greg

The inspiration behind an Inspired Adventure is different for everyone but one things remains true: it's almost always about more than the Adventure.




























This was no different for the Heart Research Centre group. For some it was because they had lost a family member from heart disease. For others it was about helping to end the impact of something before it got to their family. The work HRC does to battle the root causes of the illness are not only exceptional but incredibly important and valuable.




























For Francis and Trish, it was even more personal. Just one year ago they lost their grown adult son in a tragic and shocking plane crash. He was survived by a wife and young children as well as two sisters and parents. As you can imagine, the loss was devastating for the family. In that grief there was of course sadness but also a desire to remember, to honor, and to find happiness once more. Francis and Trish saw this adventure as a way to do that. They could work to support a great cause while simultaneously bringing an activity into their lives that would be give them focus, meaning, and a chance to challenge themselves in honor of their dear son.




























In their late 60s and early 70s, they have taken on the Great Wall Challenge with the vigor and commitment of people half their age. They raised over $16,000 and have been leading the pack every single day.




























As we took our first steps on the wall Francis looked to the sky and said out loud, "We are here Greg. We are on the wall. We made it for you." I have no doubt he is looking down on them right now with a very proud smile on his face.

--

Kyle Taylor


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Read more at kyletaylor.com

Location:Mutianyu Rd,Beijing,China

Finding love on the Great Wall

Oh what a day on the Great Wall! The sun was shining, the sky was blue, and our spirits were high as we took to the wall for day three of our Great Wall of China Challenge in support of the Heart Research Centre. With nearly $30,000 raised by just 5 super committed individuals, we took to what is considered one of the most beautiful (and steepest) sections of the wall.







It didn't take long for this bunch to make friends. In fact, within 20 minutes we were traveling with a small army of local women all helping us to climb the tough bits, stay hydrated, and support the local economy.













This time, however, if wasn't Francis who served as our ambassador at large but Michael, whose helper was literally dragging him upward by the hand at record speed. We began to joke that he had found a girlfriend (all in jest of course) and when I said it aloud in Chinese, the entire gaggle of women burst into raucous laughter. It was good fun!







As our 3-hour walk was coming to a close, we decided to give the HRC a little shootout by spelling out the acronym with our bodies in front of a spectacular panoramic view of the Wall. What a way to end a perfect day.













From there is was a late lunch and onward travel to our next section, which we'll be taking on tomorrow on a roughly 6-hour trek near the Jiankou and Mutianyu sections of the Great Wall.







For now, here are a few more photos of our epic day!




































--

Kyle Taylor


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Read more at kyletaylor.com

Location:Great Wall, China

Team HRC - Bringin' The Heat

Day two of our aim to conquer the Great Wall (or at least 60 kilometers of it) and the team is ready to rumble. We ros early and were greeted by glorious sunshine, blue skies, and the powerful Wall looking above us. After a quick breakfast of fried bread, pancakes, eggs, fruit, potatoes, and tea we hit the road to our next access point - Gubeiko.




One of the most strategically important parts of the wall, Gubeiko winds along the spine of Beijing's northern mountains, diving into valleys and crawling carefully to the apex of each peak before disappearing into the horizon.




Our target was 5 hours of walking and my goodnessp did we take it full on. Right from the start our pace was determined and we hit each milestone 20-30 minutes ahead of schedule. We laughed, we joked, but mostly we pushed each others' jaws back into place after extended periods of "oh my gosh it's mesmerizing." Trish, Claudia, and Paul pressed on while Francis taught Michael how to make friends with the locals.




As we neared hour 4 of seemingly endless stairs the calves were burning and, pores were sweating, and the breath was panting. Stil, we hunkered down, cheered each other on, and reached our stopping point before dark!




On getting to the lodge, exhausted Paul collapsed in bed while the rest of us enjoyed a well-deserved piping hot shower before dinner, beer, wine, some local shopping (get excited relatives!), and quality Aussie banter.





To bed we go in anticipation of what I am sure will be another brilliant day taking steps for the Heart Research Centre.

GO TEAM!

--

Kyle Taylor

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Read more at kyletaylor.com

Location:Jingcheng Expy,Beijing,China

Oh hey there wall. You are pretty great!

The ride out to the Great Wall is a slow and steady one. The urban sprawl of Beijing seems to be never-ending. High rises become low rises which gradually turn into split levels before melting away into the green pastures of the city's outskirts. We are 120 kilometers from the Forbidden City and there is still traffic!

After a toilet stop where we stock up on local street food, it's back on Teh bus for a light trek around the Qing Tombs and another delectable lunch before shooting onward to the Great Wall!





True to form, the sun turned to cloud turned to rain right as we were stepping off the bus! But hey, this is a charity challenge so we donned our wet weather gear and hit the Wall for Heart Research Centre. It was winding, it was steep, it was slippery, and it was incredible. The first steps almost always take your breath away. No amount of pictures or national geographic specials can prepare you for the shear size and scope of it all.





As it was our first day, we spent about two hours on the wall before winding down to our guesthouse, where we proceeded to ring out our clothes ana grab yet another delectable dinner. I cannot reiterate how delicious the food is.




Everyone is doing very well picking up the most important Chinese phrases: hello, thank you, napkin, beer, and toilet. Francis in particular has become a roving Ambassador while Claudia has won the award for multiple-continent multi-tasking as she walks, sips water, and commiserates with her 14-year old daughter in Australia on Skype.

Looking forward to some sunshine tomorrow so we can keep taking steps for Hear Rearch Centre!

--

Kyle Taylor



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Read more at kyletaylor.com

Location:Jinxing Line,Chengde,China

Important pre-show information

I'm fairly certain no commentary is necessary. Chinese signs are THE BEST:























And the amazing show:








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Location:Zhushikou E St,Beijing,China

Sites, sounds, and Francis Dancing

It started innocent enough:



It was our day to take in the sites, sounds, and smells of historic and beautiful Beijing. After a massive buffet breakfast and 20-minute wait for an elevator, we hopped in our mini bus and glided smoothly into the biggest traffic jam most of us had ever seen. Te existence of this traffic jam was confusing, as the road was completely clear 100 meters up the road. Still, that didn't stop the horns (or that woman in that pink car with pink seat covers and a pink hat from screaming at the top of her lungs out the window at EVERYONE)!

We made it to the Temple of Heaven before the crowds and the weather was just divine. Sunshine, blue skies, and the perfect cool breeze. From there it was onward to Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City.





It was its usual spectacular self and we kept our cool but sucking away on delicious dragon fruit ice pops. It was here that we met the child who would win the title for "cutest kid in China." He had no problem striking a pose for us either:



Following our visit we stopped for lunch at the most frenetic restaurant I have ever seen before shifting our late afternoon plan and taking in a quintessential China experience - an afternoon in the park. Chinese people make the best use of public space of any people in the world. There is karaoke, there is dancing, there are adorable old women emblazoned with enormous smiles, there are tulips, and there is Francis:

















Within minutes of the music starting, Francis - our lord of the dance - was moving and grooving like nobody's business. Soon, a crowd of spectators and a line of hopeful dance partners had formed. All the while Trish stood nearby repeating to us, "well there he goes!". It was the perfect end to a perfect day in Beijing!

--

Kyle Taylor




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Location:Gaojiazhai Hutong,Beijing,China