Outward bound to Kili...via a civilised hot beverage and a rather nice hotel :)

Well well, I am finally able to Blog about my climbing Mt Kilimanajro challenge...live as it happens! This is of course subject to the technology working and my laptop and iPhone batteries and chargers behaving themselves!

Alas I don't appear to be able to post photos to my Blog so you'll have to also keep an eye on my Twitter profile (to the right of this Blog) to have a look at some I post there (and just in case I end up only able to text).

So us South-West Kili Teamsters all met up yesterday at the garage and set off at 11.15am to a wonderful send-off by everyone's friends and family . Lots of tears and hankies were passed! I saved my tears for Heathrow as my partner Paul drove us up there the minibus, despite his bad back < Thanks babe > It was like going on a school outing for the day.

After a leisurely beverage at Heathrow check-in, we finally met up with our other team members and, aside from David (Bluegrass Computer Services) and I setting off the metal detectors and Sarah (Sarah West Recuitment) suddenly being swiftly taken off for a body scan, the rest of our time at Heathrow was uneventful! ;)

We landed in Nairobi at 6am local time (3am UK time) and after having to deal with an extremely rude and corrupt little visa official, we met up with Pete our minibus driver in Africa, who drove us across Kenya and over the Tanzanian border.

It was at this point that we all saw Kili in the distance. She's awesome. And much taller than we thought! Her summit was covered in snow too.

We then checked into our hotel, having been upgraded to a hotel with bedrooms larger then my lounge, dining room and kitchen all in together!

It's reality time now - Kili Ascent Day 1 tomorrow. Night all!