New computer

I'm so sorry I haven't posted pictures yet friends!  I finally got my new computer and am now trying to get photoshop to switch my software platform to MAC so my photos (RAW) can be actually read...

Day 3

This picture is at the Barranco Camp, day three ~ 30 miles of trekking by now and yes that is Kili in all it's glory behind me.

* The altitude was already affecting me heehee. There is something going on with the format of the picture I will repost later so you can actually see me!

I DID IT!

I made it to the roof of Africa on the morning of July 30th 2011!!!
It was one of the hardest and most incredible things I've ever done.  I really did feel the positive energy of you all and needed it.  I will put more details and photos on the climb daily.
Thank you all so much for your support!
Jules

Thank you all for helping me get to Kili!

Well folks, I can't believe it's here.  When I first signed up for it all it seemed like a semi distant date, however I don't even know where June went!

I leave Denver tomorrow morning and get to Moshi, 40 kms from Kili, around 10:55am Denver time on Sunday, 7:55pm Tanzania time.  It's been such a wonderful journey.  I've met many great people along the way, have trained my arse off (actually it seems to have increased in size or lifted I guess lol) and always kept an "enjoy the journey" mind.

Unfortunately not being able to go out made me miss out on the first half, of summer of fun with some friends, but I've had fun in the sun in different ways.  It's been wonderful, and the generosity of most has just really touched my heart.  Thank you all for your support!  Thank you so much for helping go through this journey, I couldn't have done it without you!

I will be trekking with my heart filled with love and positive energy, from all of you my dear friends and the energy of the ones I'm dedicating my climb for.  My darling gradma Cleo I have no doubt you will be with me to the top.

I'm so very excited!  Thank you!

Kite Lake

Camping at Kite Lake was great!  I felt pretty comfortable even though by myself.  There were families and other groups of people around.  It was funny rolling in driving the MINI.  Most had big trucks with lifts lol.
It rained a little bit right after I got my tent set up and another time over night but not too bad.  I stayed on top of Cameron for about 1 1/2 hours and headed down.  Again the clouds were rolling in and just about as I left it started pouring, around 12:30pm.
I definitely felt the altitude a bit staying over night, hoping my RBC concentration sticks around for a while!

Preparing for High Altitude - Altitude Acclimatizing

I’m camping out by Alma tonight, will be sleeping  at about 12,300ft.  I’m planning on waking up nice and early and get a couple more 14ers done tomorrow.  This will be my last big hike before Kilimanjaro.  

Why camp at altitude?  

One major reason is to increase my red blood cell count.  Red blood cells are designed to pick up oxygen from the lungs and release it into the tissues of the body.  Even though the oxygen levels do not change at altitude, staying at 21%, the barometric pressure lowers, and to get enough oxygen your body produces more RBCs.  This higher concentration of RBCs is supposed to stick around for 10-14 days, so I could be at an advantage when I start Kili.

TEN DAYS TO GO!

This week has been really good, working out twice a day.  Turbo Fire (high intensity cardio) before going to work, then a run/elliptical or weights, or a mix in the pm.  Going to sleep super early to fit the first work out in before work.  I’ve been sore for a while I actually can’t remember the last time I wasn’t sore, but it’s a good sore.  Hurts really good.  I’m feeling strong and prepared.

I will be doing these work outs until Friday and will try the “circuit of 3” mountains on the Mosquito Range, Cameron, Lincoln and Bross.  After that will be just an easy run or elliptical until it’s time to travel.

I can’t wait to see her up close and personal again!!!  She is so beautiful!

Special Thanks to Alan Haynes

Many many thanks to Alan, whose donation of $1000 help me achieve my goal!  I can now finish getting all of my gear and tighten the remainder loose ends before I leave.
Words can't express how grateful I am.
Thanks Alan!

Mt Democrat

I did Democrat this past Saturday.  My goal was to do either the "circuit of 3" or 4 over there.  You can do all four on that side of the Mosquito Range, Democrat, Cameron, Lincoln and Bross, however there were so many storm clouds moving in that after consulting with just about everybody we passed we decided to go down instead.  It was fun easy one.  I definitely want to go back this Saturday to do the
other 3 :-)
Thanks to L for joining me, you are a bad arse!

Mt Sherman

This past Saturday I got another 14er under my belt, Mt Sherman.  It was a weird mined mountain.  Loose rocks from bottom to top which made it more difficult than I thought it would be.  Also my Mini could only go so far before I needed more rock clearance so the trek ended up being about 8 miles.  It was a beautiful day, very warm, however my energy level was not up to par, I was slow and took many breaks; conclusion: bigger breakfast next time!  I was also trying a camera bag I borrowed for the first time, it was major pain going both up and down but I don't have another solution, it will have to do...

There are still patches of snow and on the last snow area on the way down I went on a butt shoot instead of doing the walk down.  That was probably the most fun of the day.

Thanks again to Sara for coming along!  Like she says, GO BIG OR GO HOME!  LOL

Live laugh love!

Gear/Enjoy the journey!

Got my sleeping bag in yesterday.  My new Marmot friend is awesome!!!  It's a 0 F, so fluffy and comfortable.  I think it will be just fine it’s sleeping time on the mountain!  I also exchanged my little pack for a larger Gregory 38 liters 2500 cu in, however I’m thinking it might be too small.  I think I would rather go larger and shrink the pack and not actually fill it up but have the extra space just in case…the backpack has been a process!  So many different opinions and when I finally get to what I need they don't have it...oh well I'm sure I will get a good solution!

I’m also looking for a solution for my camera as far as cold weather is concerned for the last 2-3 days of the trek.  I found a front drop backpack style bag at REI yesterday but still need to try the borrowed hip one to see how it works first…

Still need to get the polartec 200-300 jackets/fleece and the beautiful Julbo Colorado glasses and that will be it as far as big stuff goes.  Yeepees!

24 days!!!  It’s been such a fun process, I’ve kept my mind set on enjoying the journey and it has been awesome.  Thank you my darling friends for your support! 

Live laugh love!

“Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races one after the other”

The more I read about people that made it to Uhuru Peak (Kili's summit) the more I run into the word perseverance.  I've heard a lot about the two last days, and how hard they are.  On day 5 into day 6, which is summit day and also the last day of the trek, is an 11 hour day of mostly rocks, the alpine desert (roughly above 13,500ft)

“The rate of ascent on all Kilimanjaro climbs is much faster than the recognized recommendation of 500m per day and the fact that many people summit without major problems is largely due to the fact that having reached the summit they descend very quickly thereby preventing the worst effects of altitude setting in.  The Kilimanjaro National Park shows that only 30% of climbers actually reach the Uhuru summit with the majority of climbers turning around at Gilman’s Point, 300 meters short of Uhuru, or Stella Point, 200 meters short of Uhuru.”

The difference between those who turn around from those who manage to keep going is perseverance.  The power to make your mind control your body and keep telling you to put one front in of the other, and that the task ahead of you is not only possible but more than worth it. 

“Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting. So... get on your way.” Dr Seuss

Bierstadt

I decided on Bierstadt for the first 14er this past Saturday.  It seemed like a good reasonable mountain to start with.  Its summit is at 14,060ft.  I went with my friend Sara and since her condo is off 285 we took that route to Guanella Pass.  I think at the end of the trek my GPS watch read 6.80 miles as the total distance.  It took us about 3:40 mins to get to the top and even know we are little confused on what the finish time was (I haven’t verified the data on the Garmin watch yet) we think it took us about 6-6 1/2 hours to do the trek.  We did stop to have lunch on the way up for about 20 minutes and we also hung out on the top for about 15.  

I was trying to go slow to control my breathing the whole time while Sara’s style was to go a little faster and take little breaks, it worked out perfectly!  

I felt a little out of breath once we hit about 13000 ft but my body got used to it within a few minutes.  I did however feel the altitude. I felt a little out of balance, my poles helped me a ton and my depth of perception was a bit off as well.  

I didn’t realize the last 45 minutes of the summit area were just rocks and big boulders and some parts of it were pretty sketchy.  However the sensation of making it to the top was amazing.  It was exhilarating.  I’m pretty much set on doing one 14er every weekend until Kili.  

It was very windy for most of the day and much colder than I thought it was going to be.  I wished I had taken my balaclava, mittens and hand warmers, I only had thin gloves. I definitely got a bit of a wind burn on my face. My feet were perfect though, through the mud on the bottom, the water run offs all over, rocks and some snow...the boots are really good, warm and by now pretty much broken into. 

I loved doing Bierstadt and thanks to Sara for coming!  You did an awesome job girl and you had no poles!  Due to an unfortunate Safeway truck accident the road to Bailey was blocked and we were sitting on the highway for 2 ½ hours on the way back but found a great restaurant once we got to Bailey and had time to commemorate our 14er victory.  It was a great day!

The rocky photo is of the last 35-45 mins of the trek, all rocks!  Then there is one of me at the summit, it was very very windy!  All 14ers in Colorado are market by the US Gov so we got a photo as proof we made it there :-)
Live, laugh, love!

Gear

I'm having a hilarious time today getting some gear ordered.  Between sleeping bag, pee funnels, steri pens and gators I've had quite a few laughs!
The pee funnels are for night time when it's way to could to go outside and expose your backside to pee! LOL, yes I'm getting them!  I've also finally decided on the Marmot Trestles 0 F

Attitude is everything!!!

‎"Attitudes are contagious. Are yours worth catching?" D. Mannering

Motivation

The high intensity work out classes are finally getting a little better.  I'm finally not feeling like I'm going to throw up every time!  LOL
I'm starting to feel stronger now I just need to keep it up!

"Brick walls are there for a reason.  They give us a chance to show how badly we want something".

I WANT IT BADLY!!!

Time to hit the ground running!

I can't believe it's mid June already!  I leave Denver in 40 days!  From today on, training will be a little more rigorous.  I will be hiking just about every day so if you want to join just let me know.

"The person who gets the farthest is generally the one who is willing to do and dare. The sure-thing boat never gets far from shore." Dale Carnegie 

Live laugh love

New addition to Chapter 3!  Fresh out of the oven!
Viver, sorrir, amar!
It's been me as of January 2011.  I did it not just for a reminder of these words that are so important to me, but also a as reminder of this time of my life, these experiences I am going through and am about to.  A reminder that today is only possible because of my actions yesterday and tomorrow will be a reflection of how I live today.
Live every moment
Laugh out loud
Love beyond words!

Whose house? My house!

Today was day 5 of the Beach Body high intensity work out addition to my daily routine.  I love how it makes me feel.  I feel like I am burning calories hours and hours after the work out.  The classes are very hard and truthfully I felt like throwing up every single time, hoping that will change within a week or two.  The hope with this addition is not only to trim down and get stronger but also to increase my lung capacity.  Even living up here I feel like my stupid years of smoking, thank god I quite 4 years ago, are still holding me back a little bit.  I definitely still feel out of breath here and there and I very much dislike it!  If you are a smoker QUIT TODAY!!  It's the biggest scam ever; it's bad for your body in every single way manageable!

According to the American Lung Society it takes about 15 years for your lungs to recover if you were a smoker!  Quit today!!  It was the best thing I’ve ever done for myself!

Live, laugh, love!