3. Wednesday June 30 – 1 day till we leave for Africa

Anyway, the point of this blog is to tell the full tale – a diary, if you like, but one that everyone can read and, I hope, enjoy. I obviously won't be able to post at certain times but I'll be taking a notebook and, when we get back, I'll post my exact thoughts as and when they appeared during the trip.

With just a couple of days to go before the great Kilimanjaro adventure begins, you’d expect us rugged outdoorsmen types to be preparing ourselves mentally and physically for the journey ahead with a strict, well-balanced regime….right? Wrong.

Last night, I left work pretty late, went to the supermarket and chemist to pick up some last minute necessities (wet wipes – there’ll be no water to clean ourselves up with for a few days up near the top; two multipacks of Mars bars – they’re like energy bars only cheaper; industrial strength Iburprofen – altitude sickness can lead to awesome headaches).

I got home, thought about packing, decided against it and headed to the pub to watch Spain v Portugal. Got a bit tipsy and had three hours’ sleep due to the Mefloquine (lariam) anti-malarial meds that I’ve had to start taking already that are famously a bit trippy to say the least. Think the side-effects are settling a little now but some people have a rotten time on them. Two months of nightmares is no exaggeration.  

So, not exactly perfect preparation but I have booked myself in for a little back and foot massage later on. And I’m persuading myself that last night’s beers were basically an advanced form of hydration…

If I’m 100% honest, I’d hardly considered the reality of this adventure till a couple of days ago – a few small doubts are starting to creep in….

Well, they were creeping in till I took my second weekly Mefloquine...the side-effects are pretty rubbish but the first few hours have me high as a kite!