PART A: THE GEAR LIST

In a three-part series of articles, we will detail some of the logistics that have gone into this expedition to Mt. Kilimanjaro. First, we will detail the Gear that we are packing (see below). Second, we'll talk about the Trip Logistics, including Flight, Accommodations, Regional Details, Mountain Guides and Porter details. Third, we will describe the route that we will be taking up the mountain on this seven-day climb. Join us and enjoy …

PART A: THE GEAR LIST

Many people have asked us about the gear that we would pack for our Kilimanjaro climb, partly because we will be in tents for the 7 day expedition in temperatures that will range from +30C to -15C, but also because of the extreme high altitude. Here is a photo of my gear and a description of most of the items I'm taking with me.

PACKS

- North Face Expedition Duffle Bag with Shoulder Straps, XL/150 litres. Yellow for easy spotting in the many airport carousels we will search. This needs to be rainproof as it will not fit inside our tents.

- MEC Alpine Crag Day-Pack, 35 litres, plus MEC Rain Cover.

- Various small O.R. waterproof compression stuff-sacks for down coats, sleeping bags, food & clothes.

SLEEP SYSTEM

- Sleeping Bag: North Face -18C Down, plus an MEC Emperor Penguin Over-bag

- Sleeping Mat: Big Agnes insulated air-core inflatable sleeping mattress

- Pillow: I normally don't take one but I am old now so my daughter is lending me her Miss Ladybug Cushion. Sweet dreams!

- Ear Plugs so I don't have to listen to Scott snore.

- Alarm on my Casio Altitude Watch for that Midnight start on the last day for the summit push.

OTHER GEAR

- Nikon Binoculars to see Zebras, Elephants, Lions & Giraffes.

- Sunglasses: Smith Trace Polarized Sunglasses with grey/yellow/clear interchangeable lenses and protective case.

- Ski Sticks: Gabel Mount Blanc colapse-able hiking poles

- MEC Thermometer so we know JUST how cold we are :-(

- Casio Watch with Time, Alarm, Altitude & Barometric Pressure gauges

- Accessory cord & accessory carabiners to make a clothes line to hang-dry stuff

- 2x Headlamps and small flashlight for the tent.

HYDRATION & FOOD

- Platapus 3 litre Hydration System mounted in Day Pack with the sucking hose clipped on the shoulder strap of my Day Pack. It is expected that this will freeze at high altitude (above 14,000'), so I will also carry….

- Nalgene Bottle, 1 Litre wide mouth lexan water bottle with an O.R. Insulated Bottle Wrap, carried either in my pack or, if it is too cold, in my jacket to prevent freezing.

- Thermos: MSR lightweight 750ml Thermos with O.R. Insulated Wrap

- Clif Bars, Beef Jerky & Trail Mix for on-the-go energy

- Chocolate: Toblerone & Ritter Bars to keep me happy :-)

- Nuun electrolyte enhanced drink tablets, tropical fruit flavoured

- Starbucks VIA Readybrew dark roast coffee

- A wee bit of Single-Malt Scotch

- Pee Bottle. Climbers are often too embarrassed to mention this but it is important with all the water we have to drink and with the cold temps up high. Don't worry, it is well labelled so we don't confuse it with a water bottle (ew).

CLOTHING

- Head Gear: Ball Cap from The Mountaineers (Keene, NY): Wicks moisture, vented, converts into a safari hat with a neck cover. Also, a "Buff" head-wrap thingie, an O.R. Skull Cap Toque and a super duper warm Helly Hansen pile balaclava. Mmm, toasty.

- Shirts, Base-Layer: Merino Wool full length zip-up, Mountain Hardware wicking Pull-Over & UnderArmour wicking short sleeve shirt.

- Shirts, Outer Layer: Mountain Hardware full-length Mid-Layer

- Shorts: Royal Robbins Cargo Shorts

- Pants, Base-Layer: MEC Fleece Pants and 1 pair synthetic long-johns

- Pants, Outer-Layer: MEC Fusion Climbing Pants made with Schoeller, a waterproof breathable and stretchy miracle material.

- Gloves/Mits: North Face fleece gloves & MEC Gore-Tex Expedition Overmits.

- Jacket, Inner-Layer: North Face Windwall fleece jacket & North Face down vest

- Jackets, Outer-Layer: North Face Gore-Tex 3/4 length Shell with pit-zips & adjustable hood, treated with Nikwax Durable Water Repelancy Treatment. I will be taking an MEC packable Rain Jacket, seam-sealed and taped but very light weight. Also an MEC Tremblant Down Parka for those cold nights at 15,000 and the final summit push to 20,000' at midnight.

- Gaiters: O.R. full Gaiters to keep mud, rocks & snow out of boots.

- Socks: 3x Merino Wool & Synthetic over-socks, and 2x inner liner socks

- Shoes: Patagonia Boaris Trail Shoes.

- Boots: Asolo Superfly GTX Gore-Tex boots treated with Nikwax waterproof treatment. Well broken in.

COMMUNICATION & ENTERTAINMENT

- Camera: Canon 9MP 10x Optical Zoom. I opted not to take an SLR camera as it is far to heavy and bulky for a 7 day climb. Lots of SD Memory Cards.

- Tripod: Jobi Gorilla, medium with bendy-wrapable legs for creative shots.

- Batteries: 3x Apple Rechargeable AA's with small, light weight charger and interchangable-international power adapter heads.

- Power Adapters: Apple World Power Adapter Kit with USB Power Port

- Music: 2x Apple iPod Shuffles

- Live Blogging, GPS Tracking, 2nd Camera & Emergency Phone: Apple iPhone 4S , unlocked with Tanzanian Micro SIM Card. This will connect to the internet at some points on the mountain, although only at a few places.

- Headphones: Sennheiser M450 bluetooth/corded over-ear headphones (I love good music and I hate cords).

- Speaker: Jawbone Jambox Bluetooth Speakerbox for jamming with Marley at High Camp, getting our Psych On!

- Power: Solio Bolt Solar Charger for USB Power. A

PERSONAL ITEMS

- Cards and a book for down time in the tent

- Passport, Vaccination Record, local & US currency, Emergency #s.

- First Aide Kit and Moleskin

- Towel: MSR micro travel towel & Wet-Ones to stay clean

- T.P. Ya, Lots of TP! Also, a Trowel for digging/burying a biffy along the way.

- Bic mini Lighter

- Toothbrush, sawed in half to save weight & a little paste

- Aquatabs water treatment & an MSR Water Purification Pump

- Swiss Army Knife and a titanium Spork (Spoon/Fork combo) plus the cup from my thermos

- Hand Sanitizing lotion, SPF30 Sunscreen & Lip Balm

- Diamox High Altitude prescription to be taken only if needed

- "Lake Louise High Altitude Triage" Scoring System for early detection of HACE & HAPE Acute Mountain Sickness

- Oxygen Meter to measure oxygen levels at each camp