Active Amputee: Success on Kili!

Monday, October 12, 2009

Success on Kili!

On Saturday October 10th at approximately 7:30am, after a very long/cold/dark night, we made it to the top Uhuru peak, the highest of the three peaks of the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro and the highest point in Africa!

My leg was never a problem, this model of Mike seems to be built for climbing. It was a lot to ask, 6 gruelling days to the top, each more challenging than the last, and 2 days down, but it held up well under the stress. Lisa fought through days of altitude sickness and soldiered on, half exhausted and running on fumes by the time we reached the summit.

We're still in Africa and time is limited before we head off to the Serengeti today so I'll write a more detailed account later, but I thought I'd quickly post our success!

There'll be no living with me now!

Juma (assistant guide), Lisa, Mike, Mgeta (head guide)

5 comments:

MelodyOctober 12, 2009 at 5:36 PM
You are just amazing Mike! Well done and you rock! Congrats to Lisa also, altitude sickness and all she made it up. I am so proud of you guys! Dexter says Wooo hoooo!
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SmiffyOctober 13, 2009 at 7:22 AM
Woohoo! That's fantastic! Well done!

So is mountaineering in the to-do list now?

Lisa - you're a trooper - altitude sickness is not fun.
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AnonymousOctober 13, 2009 at 9:55 AM
Dude - awesome doesn't cover it - congrats to both you and Lisa !!!

;-)

Dave.
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MJOctober 13, 2009 at 3:24 PM
Congrats Mike!
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COURAGEOctober 20, 2009 at 7:27 PM
Tears of joy! Congratulations Lisa & Mike. And a BIG thank you to your guides. Hope your cameras were as successful. Nice job!
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About This Blog

This blog is intended to serve a few purposes:

1) As a resource for other amputees who would still like to lead a very active lifestyle.

2) To pass on anything I learn as a resource for new amputees to help guide them through the process as well as a way to collect information for myself from others who read can offer tips, advice, etc.

3) To help me see how far (hopefully) I've come from the hospital bed with its oxygen tubes and countless IV lines.

Before and after my surgery, I had friends and family scouring the internet looking for resources and good information about what I could expect from the experience as well as resources on how I could begin rock climbing again, biking, scuba diving, snowboarding, etc, etc, etc.

Collectively, we found very little. Since then, I've kept notes about what the "unexpected" was and I intend to keep taking notes on any success or set back I might have.

As a side bonus, this will also serve to as an easy way to keep friends/family up to date on my progress and as a tidy way for me to make lists, just like the one above and just like the ones in my first few posts! Who doesn't love lists? They made Letterman famous.

A brief disclaimer: I'm certainly not advising anyone to do any of the things I post about. I write about my own experiences in hopes it helps someone else come up with their own ideas. I follow several blogs for that very reason and it's helpful to hear how other people manage some of the tricky situations or challenges they come across. If you do think something I've posted sounds like a good idea and decide to give it a go, you do so at your own risk.

Active Amputee

Monday, October 12, 2009

Success on Kili!

5 comments:

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