Kilimanjaro Guides & Porters COVID19 Relief
Donation protected
As some of you know and despite the pandemic, my dad and I were lucky enough to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro in September of this year. Between canceled flights, guide companies changing their plans, and multiple COVID tests, we still managed to go on our journey to the tallest mountain in Africa.
It was an experience of a lifetime and the coolest thing I’ve ever done. I was definitely expecting the mountain and climb itself to be amazing. But what really blew me away were the people, Tanzanians are truly good people. They are citizens of a developing country and Tanzania surely has its struggles but that didn’t stop them from showing unending kindness.
In order for us to climb to the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro and back, we needed the help of a local guiding company. They supplied us with two mountain guides, Kassim and Emannuel, who kept us safe on the trip and 10 porters to carry extra gear and food, who were incredibly professional and kind. It is a very long and difficult journey that takes a lot of organizing and preparation.
Once we started to hike back off the mountain, we learned what troubles they really do have in the current pandemic. Emannuel told us that they usually guide people up Kilimanjaro all 12 months of the year, around two trips per month. However, the pandemic has changed everything. Emannuel, Kassim, and the porters typically average 24 trips per year and this year they’re only going to guide on the mountain less than 5 times.
The local economy in Tanzania depends on people coming there to climb Kilimanjaro. They barely make enough money to make ends meet. But with COVID-19, their situations is much worse. COVID-19 has essentially stopped their economy. The ironic part is that Tanzania actually does not have a problem with COVID-19 but other countries do that travel there such as the USA, Germany, Australia, etc. Our guides and porters are fighting for their lives and there is no work available in this developing country.
I have thought often lately about how well we do have it here. Especially in 2020, it’s a time to be grateful for all that we have. The guides and porters are such good people and they really need our help. Anything helps, even if its only $5. During this holiday season, take a second and consider donating to the guides and porters of Kilimanjaro because their lives depend on our help.
It was an experience of a lifetime and the coolest thing I’ve ever done. I was definitely expecting the mountain and climb itself to be amazing. But what really blew me away were the people, Tanzanians are truly good people. They are citizens of a developing country and Tanzania surely has its struggles but that didn’t stop them from showing unending kindness.
In order for us to climb to the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro and back, we needed the help of a local guiding company. They supplied us with two mountain guides, Kassim and Emannuel, who kept us safe on the trip and 10 porters to carry extra gear and food, who were incredibly professional and kind. It is a very long and difficult journey that takes a lot of organizing and preparation.
Once we started to hike back off the mountain, we learned what troubles they really do have in the current pandemic. Emannuel told us that they usually guide people up Kilimanjaro all 12 months of the year, around two trips per month. However, the pandemic has changed everything. Emannuel, Kassim, and the porters typically average 24 trips per year and this year they’re only going to guide on the mountain less than 5 times.
The local economy in Tanzania depends on people coming there to climb Kilimanjaro. They barely make enough money to make ends meet. But with COVID-19, their situations is much worse. COVID-19 has essentially stopped their economy. The ironic part is that Tanzania actually does not have a problem with COVID-19 but other countries do that travel there such as the USA, Germany, Australia, etc. Our guides and porters are fighting for their lives and there is no work available in this developing country.
I have thought often lately about how well we do have it here. Especially in 2020, it’s a time to be grateful for all that we have. The guides and porters are such good people and they really need our help. Anything helps, even if its only $5. During this holiday season, take a second and consider donating to the guides and porters of Kilimanjaro because their lives depend on our help.
Organizer
Ryan Lipinski
Organizer
Grand Rapids, MI