[pct-l] Mount Kilimanjaro

[Gretchen Brauer-Rieke]

We know that the best deterrent for altitude sickness is natural
acclimatization by spending time at high altitudes before going higher.
When climbing, though, that can be tough to do in the time spans that we
have.  My husband and I (who live at nearly sea level) hiked the Inca Trail
last summer, at altitudes consistently between 11,000 and 13,000+ feet.  We
only had 2 days to acclimatize at 11,000 before starting the trek, so added
some other measures in the hopes of avoiding a struggle with altitude
sickness (not having much oxygen pressure and having to climb 3,000 was hard
enough without being sick).  We took gingko biloba twice/day starting a week
before we left and continuing through the trip, started Diamox as we arrived
in Peru and continued it in low-mod doses as long as we were increasing
elevation (we experienced minimal side effects, but realize using Diamox
prophylactically is very controversial in the literature and climbing
community), and also used ibuprofen twice/day while at high elevations.  You
can google any one of these (along with search terms "altitude sickness")
and find the current research.  In the end, oxygen is what the body craves
at high elevations, so I'd suggest that you seek out a guide who carries
oxygen to use if symptoms gets difficult (and remember that, in some cases,
descending is what is necessary in order to stay alive).  Our guide carried
a tank of oxygen, but we didn't need to use it.

 

If anyone wants a short warm-up to the PCT, I highly recommend the Inca
Trail, by the way!

 

Gretchen