Not Typical Zeroes

DECEMBER 3-Most Frustrating Day

After taking the unplanned zero day due to the heavy rains December 2nd, this was supposed to be the day to get things together for the stretch through Tsavo East National Park. 

As the day started we went into Voi and tried to get more money. Staci was allowed to, I wasn't. Frustrating. Staci was able to buy a tradional African skirt called a leso, pronounced lace-oh. 

This hornbill was a highlight of the day, as we waited for yet another meeting with KWS staff. 

The visits to Kenyon Wildlife Services KWS) to line up the Rangers to replace Samson and Saleem did not go well.  The KWS said we couldn't hike in the park!  Staci had done her research, and even had the email from KWS from six months ago assuring her it was okay. We kept getting bounced around, finally to the top. The answer was "no."  The guy who sent the email was lower ranking, and in fact was from Tsavo West and shouldn't have been speaking for Tsavo East. 

Staci was seething. 

In the evening Staci came up with optional reroutes. One dilemma existed. If  Tsavo West National Park followed the example of Tsavo East, the only way to achieve the continuous footpath would be to backtrack considerably and hike in to, and through Tanzania. 

It meant another zero day ahead. An unexpected three day zero is hard to live with. 

DECEMBER 4-Solutions

This Masai allowed me to take his picture. We are now moving more in to the Masai territory and are seeing more. 

Changing the route to the south, through a community wildlife protection area, can get Staci to an entrance gate at Tsavo West with seven days of hiking.  A contact Tony made, a visit by Madame Mercy (an acquaintance of Tony's) and a few calls solved the re-route of Tsavo East dilemma. A two hour drive north to the headquarters of Tsavo West National Park was next on the agenda. That went better than expected. It is absolutely okay for her to hike through that park, as long as she pays fees and with Ranger accompaniment. 

It was time for the two hour trip back to Voi, and meeting again with Tsavo East KWS to get their Rangers to walk with Staci for the stretch from Mackinnon Road to the West Tsavo gate. After our less than satisfactory visits yesterday, there was trepidation. 

This was along the road on much of the way from Tsavo West NP to Voi. The most expensive project the Kenyan government history has ever undertaken is the building of this high speed railroad from Nairobi to Mombasa. It is being funded, and engineered etc by China. It is a massive undertaking. The train will carry cars, freight, and passengers. The two lane main artery now is woefully inadequate. 

The visit to KWS Tsavo East this time worked out great. They would have Rangers at the Mackinnon Road station at 9:00 a.m. December 5, ready to hike. Staci needs to be putting in miles, or kilometers, or she will go stir crazy. 

We stayed at Madam Mercy's compound along the way to Mackinnon Road. She has a sort of orphanage, unwed mothers, women's assistance place. This was right next door. It was up on a rise and afforded quite a view. 

Trucks, Trucks, and More Trucks

DECEMBER 1-Busy Road from Samburu to Tsavo

I hiked on a typical two track road through small villages for about seven miles. 

We took a break, and met Tony under this tree. It was a tamarind tree. I love the tamarind sauce Theresa makes at home. He tried to get a pod for me to eat, but they were way too high up the tree. 

A little past then Staci and the two guards turned left on to the busiest highway in Kenya. Mombasa is the largest sea port in Eastern Africa, and Nairobi is the largest, and Capitol city. The two laned, paved road with plenty of potholes, is a buzz of activity. 

This was not a day for wildlife viewing. 

Staci pushed hard. She wore Samson out. He finally had to get in the chase vehicle with Tony and I. They pulled off a 44km day, about 25 miles. 

During one break Samson did the excited "snake" dance, and hopped back quickly instead of sitting down in grass as originally planned. They messed around and came nonchalantly to the conclusion that it was a python. We went ahead with the break. It wasn't my most comfortable and relaxing break. 

DECEMBER 3-RAIN

Incredible rain through the night led to some flash flooding, and my tent being in a pond. It was a hard, hard rain. When I finally got the nerve to get up I saw Staci had moved her tent during the night. I wish I had. 

Any thought of hiking as originally planned was cancelled as the torrential rains continued. 

The new plan was to get in to Voi and see about meeting the Warden from the Tsavo area and getting the new Rangers lined up for the next stretch. The trip to Voi was fascinating with the flooding. What a mess on this major highway. 

Leaving Shimba Hills

NOVEMBER 29-Leaving Shimba Hills

The morning was used for last minute preparations and packing up for the long haul. Tony had much to do, and was late. It was simply "Africa Time."  I had heard about this before coming on the trip. Folks being way late on a regular basis. In this case we left an hour and a half after the original plan. Saleem and Samson were waiting for us at the park headquarters near the Main Gate of Shimba Hills. 

The timing worked out.  Staci is one of the most reliably prompt people I know. Being on time has always been important to her. She was very good being patient. Hakuna Matata.

Joe helped his dad with the final packing.  Tony, Steph, and Joe have very British accents. Steph and Joe will now leave for the UK to spend the holidays with Steph's family. 

When we met back up with Saleem and Samson we learned the folks from the adjacent area, who were going to take over as guards, fell through. Saleem and Samson would stay with us for a few more days. This made us feel comfortable. The only problem was they had no food. It meant we would have to take care of them. It was a good deal for us. We paid for their dinner in the town of Kinango, it was about $2.80 in US money. 

There were about fifteen miles to cover, and because of the late start we got moving at 1:30 pm. It was time for speed hiking. I made it about twelve miles, then had Tony pick me up. Staci and the guards made it in about fifteen minutes before dark. 

We saw a warthog and a large gathering of baboons today, but not near as much wildlife as in the Park. 

Folks along the way are very, very curious as to what we're up to. Saleem and Samson are constantly answering questions of the locals. 

My last post also says November 29. That was really November 28. 

NOVEMBER 30-Long Day for Hikers, Easy for Me

I couldn't get motivated. Staci and the guards headed out early and Tony and I lounged at the Kenyan Wildlife Service (KWS) station. We had some coffee, and took our time packing. 

Our hosts, Bob and Moosah, from the KWS were gracious hosts. 

It was a long walk through rural, bush areas. When Tony and I caught up with the hikers, after about three hours, they were tired. 

Samson has developed a blister. 

I finally hiked a few miles at the end of the day. 

As it was last Sunday lots of folks walking  to churches in their Sunday best clothes. 

We had goat for lunch, and for dinner, along with ugale.  I don't remember ever eating goat before, but it's a staple here. 

Main Gate-Shimba Hills

NOVEMBER 29-A Double Nero-in to Diani Beach 

Staci made a curry dinner, and Samson made the meat for last night's meal. It was quite the Thanksgiving feast. It was unique to have them listen to each other's play lists on their phones. It was fun that Samson really liked the sound of country music. 

Sunrise was beautiful at the Sable Bandos, where we camped. 

The Main Gate at Shimba Hills. This doesn't mean we're done hiking through the Park (Reserve), it will still be a day of hiking in the next section, so Saleem and Samsom will join again with us one more day after this nero of resupplying. 

By 9:00 a.m. we were headed back in Tony's rig toward Diani Beach. We needed to resupply and see about charging electronics. This has become a headache. A necessary plug that worked, 

worked, fried. We had no way to charge from a wall socket here. We luckily found what was needed, but it looked funny. Even so we could only charge one item at a time, and nothing charged quickly. The only reliable charging mechanism we had was a solar charger we borrowed from a friend in Scott Valley. The reason charging was important we have so many items, and no reliable electricity ahead. Two cell phones each (US and Kenyan), InReach tracker, two external batteries, and a set of two way radios. 

We shopped. Selections are limited. I wanted rubber cement, as my doggone air mattress is leaking badly. I tried, to no avail, to repair it with duct tape. I had to buy an entire tire repair kit just to get a tube of the cement I needed. I could survive, miserably, with a flat air mattress for most of the trip, but it must function on Mount Kilimanjaro or the cold wouldn't be good. 

It's hard to imagine cold right now. I have no idea how hot it is, but it's real hot. They say that where we're heading next, toward East Tsavo and West Tsavo, is even hotter. Oh my. 

This mama baboon is packing the baby baboon behind. They are pests here. 

We had a nice lunch at an awesome little restaurant on the beach before resuming taking care of our resupply chores. 

Shimba Hills

NOVEMBER 26-Sable Antelope

The morning was taking care of permits, then heading out. 

Immediately we came across elephant tracks. Staci's fingers are about at the toes, and it goes back toward her. 

These are the two armed guards who accompanied us on the hike through the park. Saleem and Samson were fantastic. To say the least they are fascinated by this whole adventure. 

They are Rangers at Shimba Hills National Park. They normally spend their time chasing down timber and elephant poachers. This was a change of pace. Nobody had ever asked to walk through the park!  I now had to try not to slow down Staci and these two young Rangers in the heat and humidity. Luckily this day wasn't as long or hard as the first hiking day. 

A lot of strange looking and sounding birds were around. I think he called this one an egru. He pointed out a small snake wiggling across the road, it was a cobra. It was way too small to be frightening, it didn't have a big flat head yet. On the PCT sometimes I would just "cowboy camp," throwing my sleeping bag on my air mattress and not bothering with a tent. I guarantee I will not cowboy camp on this trip!

Then the highlight of the day, a herd of Sable antelope. They were great in the binoculars, but you can't see much here. Staci and Saleem did the sneak on the herd, and got much closer. The Papa (dominant male) actually got irritated and ran a few bluff steps toward Staci and Saleem. It was an awesome sight to see. 

Sable antelope are very rare, and this is the only place in Kenya with them. Staci has better pictures than I, she got way closer. 

Later on the hike we saw a buffalo. Staci and Saleem did the sneak on the buffalo on saw there were actually four, two young and two old. These are smaller than the Montana buffalo I'm used to. 

For camp we made it to an outpost within the park. Two other Kenyan Wildlife Service employees were there. They did all the cooking. One highlight was our second evening meal, Ungale, a traditional meal. It was excellent, like eating sticky rice with the dipping sauce being a meat and broth. 

We're trying to pick up some Swahili. I may be too old to learn a new language, but it's fun trying. Hakuna Matata isn't just from the movie the Lion King. 

NOVEMBER 27-Thanksgiving Day-Seldrick Falls

We started out taking a little side trip to see Seldrick Falls. It was worth the energy. 

You can see how small Staci is in relation to the falls. I stood under the falls and their force was almost literally breathtaking. 

The kitchen area at the outpost where we stayed. 

We stopped back at the camping area after our little morning side trip. Just before we went to bed they had us move our tents as elephants sometimes use that as a pathway. Since we didn't want to be squished by an elephant, we moved up and camped between the huts. 

The excitement came today when we came upon this large herd of buffalo. They we interested in the four of us, and Saleem and Samson immediately got serious. In no time Samson had a shell in the chamber. Saleem had us keep walking until we went out of the sight of the buffalo, then we back-tracked a ways, then went off the road to the backside of a ridge away from them. We never saw them again, but it was fascinating for a bit. 

Not long after, a lone buffalo came bolting in front of us and got a little adrenaline flowing in all of us again.  It's very obvious why we are required to have the armed guards. We found out later that the lone buffalo may have been a scout sent out by the herd to find us. 

The Trip to Kenya

NOVEMBER 21-23

My middle daughter, Staci, is on her quest to hike from the Indian Ocean to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro!  I'm along for support, to see something new, get some hiking in, and to also climb the mountain. Staci is writing a blog about her adventures, hiketoclimb.com  She has a better camera, and will be walking every step of the journey. I'll have my cell phone camera, and will be doing plenty of hiking to help get in shape for the Mount Kilimanjaro climb which is scheduled for mid-January. Primarily I will be a supporter. 

It's a long series of flights to get from LA to Mombasa, Kenya. Chris Weedon dropped us off Friday night, November 21, at 9:00 p.m. at LAX. We landed at Mombasa Airport in Kenya at 2:00 p.m. Sunday, November 23rd. 

It wasn't as bad as it sounds because the clocks moved forward 11 hours as we headed east. There were no grueling layovers, and connecting flights went smoothly. A couple hours at Dulles Airport in Washington DC, a couple more in Addis Ababa Airport in Ethiopia, and finally about an hour at Kilimanjaro Airport in Tanzania where we didn't get off the plane, were reasonable. The leg between Dulles and Addis Ababa was a long twelve or thirteen hours.  Staci got some sleep, I didn't sleep much. 

Our planned pickup by Tony, our driver who will be our support throughout, went smoothly, as did our movement through health screening and customs. 

I have seen glimpses of third world poverty before, on parts of Mexico and on a trip through Fiji, but the trip through Mombasa was eye-opening. This is one of the most populated cities of Kenya, and certainly the poorest place I have ever seen. 

The drive south to Diani Beach, about an hour was fascinating.  Diani Beach is a nice place. It's a tourist destination and had a comfortable feel. At one point we were stopped at a police roadblock and the policeman came straight to me speaking Swahili. It took a bit for him to grasp that I was clueless as to what he was saying, and Tony was able to reassure him so we could proceed.

Upon reaching Diani Beach the exhaustion had set in. Tony, and his wife Steph, had lined up a perfect cabinette for us in Diani Beach. It had amenities like showers, flush toilets, and electricity. There was no WiFi and only spotty cell service. We walked down to the beach and saw the Indian Ocean just at the bottom of the yard.  The white sands and the beach were beautiful. 

Staci and I both went to bed early. The next day was for continued planning and preparation for the adventure.

NOVEMBER 24-Preparing

It was time to take care of finances. Tony took us to the bank. They limit the daily amount one can withdraw here from each account. Staci has the power of a debit card and a credit card that work. I ran into the problem that MasterCard debit card wasn't OK in the bank. It will mean more coordinating, and a bit of a hassle. 

As we were going through the community of Diani Beach there was an incredible police presence along the main road. Tony said the President (Kenyatta) or Deputy President of Kenya was coming.  While we were inside shopping a motorcade came by with about ten cars.  Tony said you couldn't tell which one the politician was in. 

It was odd to have security at the grocery store. To enter the store we were wanded. A women checked Staci and a man for me. We showed our pocket knives after they buzzed, but we were still let in.  I guess we didn't look like much of a threat. 

We got all we could think of for the hike, then went back to the cabinette. We worked out more details of the adventure with Tony and Steph, and got to meet and enjoy their eight year old son, Joe. What a nice family. 

Staci nor I could sleep. We were both up from about 2:30 a.m..

NOVEMBER 25-We're Off

Staci at the beach

Tony got a local young man, Moshi, to walk with us this first day. Moshi's English was very poor. Swahili is by far the predominant language. 

It was incredibly hot and humid. Moshi and Staci did fine, but as the day progressed I struggled. It turned out Moshi took a turn that wasn't the most direct route.  It made for an extra long day. I was wondering if I could make it to the destination, the Kidango Gate of the Shimba Hills National Park.  

Then, on this remote two track dirt road (they're all dirt roads) came a Toyota Land Cruiser police car. I was laying down, exhausted, as Moshi and Staci talked to the two policemen. 

Unlike on the PCT where I walked footstep to footstep the whole way, my goal here is just to make it, and not bother hiking every step. However, I did expect to need to catch a ride and skip some of the hike the very first day!  I just didn't want to slow down Staci's progress.  We don't know exactly how far we hiked, but I did maybe 20 miles, and Staci probably did 25. Not a lot in PCT standards, but a lot in these conditions. 

The policemen had met Tony at the Kidango Gate where Tony was waiting for us. I gladly accepted the officers offer for a ride forward to Kidongo Gate in a police car. I would not be doing this hike footstep to footstep, that's Staci's goal, not mine. 

Kidongo Gate is a remote entrance to Shimba Hills National Park (sometimes called Wildlife Reserve). Kidango Gate is similar to an old fashioned Forest Service compound. Seven Kenya Wildlife Service employees live there. They were wonderful. We camped on their lawn.  We had trouble with our stove so they sat up a jeeko(sp?) for us to cook on. It's sort of a portable campfire ring for burning small wood, looks kind of like a Dutch oven with holes. 

Constance was a huge help, Staci and her immediately became friends. Constance became chagrined with me because she heated water for me to wash up after the meal. The water felt just right so I started washing my hands in it. I asked later and it's a no no. I really didn't need to ask however, her reaction, and the woman next to her, said it all. I was supposed to pour the water into a bucket and clean from there, the pot was to heat water in ONLY. Oops. 

There was a young, about one year old, boy living on the compound. Everybody there was raising him. He was adorable. We couldn't figure out who his parents were. This Wildlife Service outpost has the feel of one big family. 

Staci's hike is totally out of the frame of reference for the people here. Folks were/are so fascinated and helpful. 

The Final Post

The last two months off the trail has been great. November 5th I became a grandfather.  My daughter Ashley gave birth to Marina Lyn Dooley. They are beautiful!

Many were there for the excitement, what an incredible experience. 

We also learned that my oldest daughter, Kari, is expecting in May. Marina will have a cousin!

Aunt Kari and Aunt Staci joined Marina in Ashley's hospital bed. 

The plan was for me to stay in shape after finishing the PCT so the Kilimanjaro hike would be easier. My feet did not cooperate. They seemed to hurt even worse after the PCT. I finally went to the Doctor, got some exercises (rolling tennis balls under my feet, stretches, etc.) and I could finally hike again. 

I went on a couple of hikes with Pokemon and his daughter's dog, Cedar. One hike was on the PCT near Etna Summit.  It was familiar territory. 

Friends and family donated over $3500 to The Painted Turtle!  Thank you for your generous support!!!

I wasn't able to put the videos on the blog. You all know I'm not the most techno-savy person. Just getting a new phone almost ruined my ability to post this final blog. 

The backpack explosion is happening again. Tomorrow (11/20) Staci and I head down to Los Angeles. We will fly from there to Mombasa, Kenya and she will hike about 500 miles. I will hike some and provide support.  The plan is for the two of us to summit Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania sometime around January 17. 

For the climb (not the hike) I will have a porter to carry about 30 pounds of my gear. The PCT would have been infinitely easier had a porter been carrying my gear!

Thank you all again for all your love and support. 

We're unsure about how often we'll be able to update Staci's blog due to sketchy WiFi in Kenya. As often as we can update, we will. Our first day hiking is scheduled to be November 25. 

Follow Staci on her blog at hiketoclimb.com

TORTUGA