Kilimanjaro Day 4

I woke up at 6:30 AM. Within the next 24 hours, I could be standing on the roof of Africa. First, we had to climb to about 4,800 meters. Then, at midnight, we would ascend from 4,800 to 5,650 meters to reach Gilmans Point, which is also an official summit. If I was feeling brave, I could push on for another hour and a half to the absolute peak at 5,850 meters—Africa's rooftop. I was ready and felt like this was going to happen! Others seemed more worn out, but I was completely free of headaches. After breakfast, I teamed up with two English guys on the way up, and they were incredibly nice. We chatted away, and they had a great fighting spirit. We were the first ones out of the starting blocks, walking at an extremely slow pace. I followed all my checklists to the letter; nothing was left to chance. Now, it was just a matter of how my body would react at these extreme heights. I had chosen not to take Diamox, like many others did. It’s a medication that helps the body acclimatize to altitude faster. Some people swear by it, while others think it’s not worth the risk, and I didn’t want to take something that could have serious side effects. After a few hours, we reached 4,300 meters, where we took a lunch break. The mood was really high. Suddenly, my friend from Hong Kong appeared on the trail, heading down. I shouted to him, "How did it go?" and he came over with a huge smile, gave me a big hug, and said, "I did it, I did it, man!" I was so happy for him; he had made it to the top of Africa. He warned me to be careful from this point on, as his girlfriend had to turn back at Kibo Hut due to altitude sickness. After lunch, we continued on. I started to feel a slight headache, so I slowed down even more with the English guys. We were the last to reach Kibo Hut at 4,800 meters, but unfortunately, my headache had worsened. It intensified and became quite severe. I tried to go to the bathroom but had to admit that my coordination wasn’t great, and I stumbled a bit. It was incredible how just 500 meters had completely changed the situation. I tried to take a nap, but after an hour, I realized I HAD to go down. I definitely wasn’t feeling my best and was probably one of the worst off. My guide tried to convince me to stay, as it seemed like his job depended on how many people he could get to the top! But I wanted to go down now, so we headed down (stumbling) into the night towards Horombo Hut at 3,700 meters. I still had a terrible headache on the way down, which only disappeared around Horombo Hut. I must admit, I shed a few tears on my way down the mountain. Damn it, it had been such a big goal for me to stand on Africa's roof, but no, not this time. Still, I felt my decision was the right one, and my guide had to admit the next day that it would have been extremely dangerous for me to continue. We arrived late at Horombo Hut, where I was assigned to a dormitory with 12 others. I met the English guys again and shared my fate with them. They also thought it was a good decision I made. I have no intention of risking my life; I have so much to live for, and so many other great experiences waiting for me ahead.