By Jessica Edwards
An early morning shot with stars broke into sunrise over the
snow-capped peak of Mount Kilimanjaro, energizing climbers to push for the summit. A lake
shimmered pink under the African sun, its shores dancing with millions of flamingos. A
lion sleeping in a tree awakened to return the stares of a group of safari-goers watching
from the safety of a Land Cruiser.Children crowded in a tiny classroom, some sitting two
to a desk, eyes brightened by a gift of pencils, notebooks and candy.
These and other images of Tanzania are pressed indelibly in the minds
of 11 Haines Venturer Scouts and nine parent chaperones who returned last week from what
they said was a life-changing trip.
The group departed Haines May 28 for Moshi, Tanzania via Juneau,
Seattle, Newark, London and Nairobi, and returned June 15.
Shortly after their arrival in Tanzania, all 20 began a trek up Mount
Kilimanjaro, which at 19,341 feet, is the highest peak in Africa.
Christine Hansen, 18, said the climb took them through a different
climatic zone and ecosystem daily. "There were six or seven biological zones."
The group drove through a lush agricultural area at the mountain’s
base to get to the trailhead, she said. Farmers grew crops, including rice, maize,
sunflowers, bananas, and coffee.
Led by two guides from Haines-based company Alaska Mountain Guides as
well as several African guides, the hikers began in a rainforest of enormous trees, which
gave way to an open landscape covered with low brush. Hansen said it looked similar to
eastern Oregon.
Forest Podsiki, 18, said members of the group struck up card games in
the evenings with African porters hired to carry gear and cook for the trip.
Climbing slowly to acclimate themselves to the altitude, the Scouts,
parents and guides crossed alpine tundra, finally reaching the snow and ice near the
mountain’s peak.
Members of the group began feeling the effects of the altitude on the
second or third day, Hansen said. At first it was shortness of breath. "The last day,
we could really feel it. Halfway up (on summit day) I got a headache, and then I was
nauseous. But I made it."
She said several members of the group vomited. Hansen’s mother
Jansy was among the worst affected by the altitude, and was among two parents who
didn’t summit.
Hannah Hostetler, 15, said she was nearly delirious from lack of sleep
on summit day. The first of two staggered groups began hiking around 11 p.m., navigating
the frosty trail by headlamp.
"I almost fell asleep while walking," she said.
"It’s funny to see how your body keeps going after your mind has thoroughly left
the building."
There were moments of terror in the fatigue for Hostetler, who said she
was fearful of falling backwards as she was traversing steep, open snowfields in the dark.
"It’s the only point I wanted to turn back."
Both groups of hikers reached the summit around 6 a.m., greeted by a
red gold sunrise. "Being on top, the sky changed and fog moved in. It was surreal
almost," Hostetler said. The land far below them was blanketed in clouds.
"They are pretty tenacious and determined," said parent
chaperone Les Hostetler. "You didn’t doubt they were going to get to the
top."
After a two-day decent from the summit, the group rested briefly and
then set out on a safari, visiting some of Tanzania’s most famous wildlife parks.
Hansen said she’d remember vividly a lion sleeping in a tree.
"We saw a tail coming out of a tree. There was a lion there. We watched him sleeping,
and then he woke and looked at us."
Innumerable birds and butterflies populated the parks. The group saw
herds of zebra, impala, and wildebeest, groups of hippos, giraffes, elephants, water
buffaloes, a pride of lions, warthogs, mongoose, velvet and blue monkeys and baboons.
On the second night camping on safari, the group emerged from the
restrooms after brushing their teeth to find a herd of zebras and gazelles. They played a
game of ultimate Frisbee in a field littered with animal dung.
Although prior to the trip, most Venturer Scouts said they looked
forward most to the safari, Podsiki said getting to know one of the group’s African
mountain guides, nicknamed "Teacher," was a trip highlight.
The group visited a school started by Teacher for the free education of
Tanzanian children.
Podsiki said most schools in the country required parents to pay
electricity bills and buy uniforms. These costs prevented many children from attending
school.
Teacher’s school, on the other hand, was completely free for
students, funded by a U.S. foundation. A mountaineering client from Chicago had originally
gifted Teacher the money to build the school, Hostetler said.
"I realized that here in the U.S., we’re really lucky to go
to school," Podsiki said. "All the kids there were eager to learn. They were all
there by choice."
Hansen said the children, ranging from ages 2 to 12, were delighted
with a gift of school supplies presented by the Venturer Scouts. "They would take a
new pencil and break it into three pieces to share it."
Scouts and parents had a few rest days to explore the town of Moshi.
Hansen said they walked to town along the railroad tracts, the safest pedestrian option.
"We saw the huge gap between the rich and poor," she said
"There were houses with gated drives next to scrap metal shacks." Average wages
were about $1 a day.
Podsiki said although he saw poverty, most people seemed happy with
what they had.
Villagers pressed the group to buy batiks, pictures cut out of banana
leaves, soapstone carvings, and bracelets. Hansen said they quickly learned how to say
"no."
"It was just an eye-opener how different their lives are from
ours," said Hansen. "It was such an eye opener to go from Moshi, where people
are pushing huge cartfuls of hay and grass, and even little kids are doing things for
their families, to London, where people are buying cappuccinos and complaining about
flight delays."
