NOLS Heads to the Top of Africa

February 22, 2011

Standing at a breathtaking elevation of 19,298 feet, Mount Kilimanjaro ranks as the highest freestanding mountain in the world. Although it is not a technically challenging mountain, Kili’s height and traversing route makes it a demanding climb.

Setting off from Arusha, Tanzania, a small team of NOLS grads will make their way toward the mountain, experiencing both the culture and the unique environment that makes climbing Kilimanjaro such a great experience. Their route to the summit will take them along muddy trails through thick jungle, across steep rocky scrambles and eventually to hard snow near the summit.

Last year’s NOLS alumni Kilimanjaro climb was unfortunately thwarted by a volcano eruption in Iceland. The thick ash plume of Eyjafjallajokullshut shut down air traffic to most parts of Europe, including Amsterdam, the key connecting city between the United States and Tanzania.

Thankfully, this year, the skies are friendly, so from April 17-25, NOLS alumni, families and friends will attempt to climb to the top of Africa. We wish them the best of luck on their journey.

 

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Written By

Rich Brame

Rich Brame came to NOLS in the 80's as a Fall Semester in the Rockies student and worked his first NOLS course at Wind Cave National Park in 1984. Since then, he's worked varied NOLS trips and courses on five continents—with a few more on the way. Rich does some frontcountry shenanigans for NOLS, too. He's headed up NOLS' public policy, research, LNT, Yukon programs and most recently in the Alumni Relations Department.