Preparations
Above all, it's essential to have a really warm sleeping bag , four-season at the very least, ideally with an additional liner and/or Gore-tex bivouac bag. One thick sweater at the very least (better still, several thinner ones), and either a windproof jacket or a down- or fibre-filled one are absolutely necessary. A change of footwear is pretty much essential, too, as you're bound to have wet feet by the end of each day. Gloves and a balaclava or woolly hat are also handy. A light cagoule or anorak is good to have, as is a set or two of thermal underwear for the often shivering nights. Out of season (that is, most of the year), an emergency foil blanket is advisable and weighs and packs down to next to nothing. Another prerequisite is a stove , as you'll be miserable without regular hot fluids. Firewood is not available and cannot be collected once you enter the park. For food , dehydrated soup and chocolate are perhaps the most useful. Remember, excess baggage can be left for about Ksh60 a day at Naro Moru River Lodge , so take only what you'll need. Here you can also purchase a packaged mountain climb, all inclusive (PO Box 18 Naro Moru tel 0176/62212). The River Lodge has a rental shop where you can get just about anything, at prices that may make you wish you'd simply bought it in Nairobi (see under "Camping equipment" in the Nairobi Listings); the youth hostel has a limited range of items for rent. If you're travelling alone and don't meet a suitable companion (you must be in a group of two or more to make the climb), it's possible to hire a guide or porter at the Naro Moru River Lodge in Naro Moru, at Mountain Rock Bantu Lodge , 8km north of Naro Moru, at Cousin Cafe or Nanyuki River Lodge in Nanyuki, at the Transit Motel in Chogoria, or at the youth hostel up the Naro Moru route (the latter is the best place to find someone much more cheaply). Expect to pay up to Ksh850 per day for a guide, Ksh500 for a porter, Ksh600 for a cook (plus all their park fees - Ksh250 per day), but insist on a written agreement showing the wages, the number of days, who's providing the food - everything. If they ask for more (as they tend to do in Chogoria), they're trying to rip you off. You shouldn't pay the full fee until the trip is finished, nor should you entirely rely on your guide to make every necessary preparation. Incidentally, any guide now needs to possess an official KWS guiding permit - ask to see it, and don't be fobbed off with local guiding association cards - it isn't enough. Note that you're not likely to find a guide up at the park gates. For a quick taste of the mountain, you can fix up a day-hike to Mackinder's Camp , inclusive of lifts up to the gate and back down again, for around $35 (plus park fees), through one of the caretakers of the youth hostel.
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