>> Photo Journal: Grueling, beautiful mountain

I haven't written about my trip up Mt Kilimanjaro yet. I'm not quite sure I'm ready for the cathartic process yet - there will be tears.

Until the words come forward by themselves, here's the beauty of that upward journey.

Another year, another mountain

It's just over two weeks until I head away on my next adventure, and it couldn't come soon enough. It's been nearly 8 months since I was last overseas, and I'm starting to get that hot itch under foot again.

I'm off to summit Mt Kilimanjaro in 7 days via the Rongai Route with a group of 10, escorted by a local Tanzanian trekking company. Our team has been fundraising to put water infrastructure into a former IDP camp - now two resettled eco-villages outside of Nairobi - to bring clean water to over 700 families.

On February 9th, I will (hopefully) be standing at Uhuru Peak next to ice cliffs, watching the sunrise over Tanzanian farmland. It's been a while since I've wandered the mountains, and I can't wait to feel that low-oxygen, high-altitude burn in my lungs and legs again.

Like a good camp scout, I've spent this evening pouring over online shopping websites, looking to complete my packing list. Navigating the tricky world of outdoor wear, I've come across a few gems...

I'm sorry, but knee warmers...? What you actually need are these things called pants.

No amount of money could make me get on the bottom bunk of this stretcher.