Our trek up Mt. Kilimanjaro took many days. It was a tough walk, made all the more difficult by the high altitude's thin air. Without the help of our porters and staff, reaching the summit would have been impossible.
Porters are hard-working people. As you can see from this photo, they carry extremely heavy bags -- often up to 100 pounds a person. They break down and pack up morning camp when we've left and usually within 2 hours they catch up with us on the trail and hurry ahead to prepare our lunch and set up that evening's camp. When we arrive at camp in the evening, our tents are ready with our bag in it, and supper is cooking. It's such a luxury to be treated so well in such a harsh environment!
Porters don't make a lot of money, but they're eager for the work -- for 3 square meals a day, a reasonable wage, and most importantly the tips they are given by the people they help (which often exceeds their wage).
A personal thanks from me for helping make so many of my travel dreams a reality!
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