My Journey to Batian and why you too should do the technical climb up Mt Kenya.
The technical climb of Mt Kenya did not appeal to me until one day when it did. I had lived at its base for many years. I had photographed it, hiked it, fished its streams but it was probably the endless gazing at its heights that eventually seduced me. As my subconscious brain had begun a to-climb or not-to-climb conversation, I received a flyer from African Ascents, it was called ‘Fit For Mt Kenya!’.
Mid forties. Was I fit for Mt. Kenya? Jesus. Was this a mid-life crisis?
The program seemed reasonable as all fitness programs do as you evaluate them from the comfort of the couch. A friend, Ross, had seen the program too and was keen. Thing is, Ross is keen for any adventure. When it comes to safari, Ross is like the Dog at the door woofing to go for a walk. Was his the most rational or thought through enthusiasm? I was nervous. It didn’t help that he said “no problem” every time we discussed each aspect of the ascent.
We were going to try for the North Route. We would attempt it in September when the season’s sun had had a chance to clear the ice and snow from the route. I had done a bunch of top-rope climbing (this is when you can access the top of the climb to easily rig the rope) with my cousin but I had never done it in any kind of inclement weather. The idea of being over 25 pitches of rope up in the cold clouds was certainly a rather spooky proposition.
The exercise program was good fun as we had gathered a few other friends/recruits who were going to attempt the north route at the same time. The absolutely best part of the program leading to the climb was the practice climbing.
Our first destination was Hell’s Gate and its amphitheaters of basalt columns. Hell’s Gate is a joyous place to spend the day climbing. The cliffs provide perfect shade at their base and the short grass is clipped to golf course perfection by the zebra herds. The scenery was stunning and the climbing, thrilling on countless routes of many magnitudes of difficulty. The routes that we concentrated on are bolted at the top of one pitch and they were accessed by our guides, Julian Wright and Tom Gregory, who climbed to them using traditional gear.
On another training weekend we went to Dragon’s Teeth on the moorlands of the northern Aberdares. This part of Aberdares National Park has very few visitors even now with a brand new road system. Its a shame really because Dragon’s Teeth must be among the most stunning rock features in Kenya. We slept at the base of the cliffs that jut out of the moorland like the fin of a long dead Spinosaurus. For the weekend we climbed, ate, climbed again, and ate again. The climbing at Dragon’s teeth is all traditional, up thin vaulted volcanic features which meant that our guides would lead the climbs placing gear as they had at Hell’s Gate. Since most of the climbs at Dragon’s teeth were multiple pitches it meant that Ross, I and the other students needed to get used to the procedure we would implement on the mountain; Guide goes up putting in traditional gear while belayed by one of us below, he gets to an anchor or place of safety that he clips to, he calls safe and one of us clips to the rope, guide belaying from the top. After a return call we would climb one after the other, the first removing all the gear and returning it to the guide at the belay station / perch. Then we would repeat it again.
After a few climbing sessions and a bunch of fitness we were ready to embark. We backpacked the mountain slowly to hinder any chance of altitude sickness and to enjoy the unique ecology and landscapes on the mountain. We were going up with guides, Matt Wood and Duncan Casse, while Julian and Tom were going to be guiding our friends just after us. We got up to Kami Hut on our fourth night on the mountain with the plan of staying a full day at Kami to continue to acclimate. And so at 4:30 am on the fifth day on the mountain we set out to the start of the climb at a gully that cut into the mountain after a 40 minute hike over scree. The first pitches were easy and we built confidence. Our time was good, the sun was shining and we felt great. We reached the large inclined scree field called the amphitheater where we could safely unclip from the ropes and hike past the small areas where climbers sometimes set up tents in small clearing in the rocks. Not long after we began climbing again, this time into a more vertical world. The climbing remained easy after all our training but the exposure was all new. The sun brings great hope when climbing at altitude but just one cloud can begin to quickly chip away at the confidence. Our clouds while chilly weren’t packed with bad weather but they did appear like an omen. We had arrived at the north side of Firmin’s Tower a distinct and imposing fortress of stone. The easier route around this grand spike of rock was shaded and stepping out of the sun was like stepping into another world. The snow was suddenly thick and on a rock just before a particularly icy corner, Ross and I sat together on a perch of exceptional exposure. Both our guides came back after separately trying to lead the next pitch. Both were defeated by the ice. It lay in a sheet that prevented them from putting down their gear. We were high on the mountain, the shoulder you might say, but this was it. If the guides couldn’t do it, then we certainly couldn’t. Down we went.
On the hike out neither Ross nor I felt at all defeated or deflated. I can remember feeling distinctly high-spirited actually. I hadn’t made the top but it had been a damn good adventure trying. It was realizing that I couldn’t waite to try it again that gave the walk out such a cheerful bounce.
Ross and I started planning the next climb immediately. The north route would be out for another year and so we would try the traditional route up Nelion, We again embarked on our training happy to see that our skills had improved and we were getting past climbing problems that had vexed us before. It was all peachy until it wasn’t.
At Dragon’s teeth one day Julian and I were on a high route when we heard a blood curdling scream. Terror. We climbed down to find Ross crumpled and clearly in pain. He had not been attached to a rope and had been bouldering the bottom of a climb looking for structure for the guide to place his gear. It was not hard climbing but with a bare rock it wasn’t possible to begin. Ross’ thought he would be a superhero and get past the bare patch to a place with more structure. When he fell he came down onto a tussock of grass that pushed his knee at an angle and ripped his anterior cruciate ligament. Moral of the story when climbing: be attached to the rope.
Ross bravely hiking out on his torn knee.
Ross after some pain relief and some tea was able to hike out and after a quick surgery in south Africa he was back on a fast track to recovery. Meanwhile I had gone skiing in France where I too managed to tear both my own anterior cruciate ligaments. Were we cursed? My own surgeon in South Africa had never done two knees at once but he managed and I too was soon on my way to climbing again.
The knees cost us a lot of time but they also built resolve. We were going to do the Nelion route as originally planned. Ross and I would backpack our way up fishing along the way and enjoying the peace of going up the mountain without porters and a large team. This time though the mountain had been exceptionally dry and fires had begun all over the mountain consuming the heather and tussock grasses in huge tsunamis of flame. It was nerve racking but we chose our route up areas all ready burnt and this proved sensible. As before we spent two nights at the base, this time just near Austrian hut. The morning of the climb we had a lazy morning, getting to the base around 8:30 in the morning. An Italian guide had all ready embarked with his two Ukranian guests at 5:00 and we were unsure if they would want to spend the night in Howell Hut on Nelion. We carried our backpacks with sleeping bags and a bit of food but trimmed down as much as possible; one spoon for the three of us for instance. The route up was good fun and certainly less terrifying than the first time around. There is a traverse on the route that gets your attention as you become more aware of your height as you negotiate around a jutting point with a swing like move. There are some easy parts of the route too which are more scramble than vertical and here we were able to move as a team together simule-climbing (we are attached to one another with a rope) but not on a traditional belay. This saved time and within several hours we were at the top of Nelion. We passed the Ukrainians near the top. They were good climbers with a proficient guide but he had never climbed Mt Kenya and needed to consult notes to know the route. We appreciated then the value of the local knowledge that Julian was able to bring to the adventure.
A quick bite of salami and we were on our way to Batian. The two pitch belay to the gates of mist was mind blowing. This was real Lord of the Rings country and by far my most favorite part of the experience. To the west on our left we could see down the shoot towards the Diamond Couluire. to the east there was a precipice of equal magnitude and awe.
We were clipped to safety but at the Gates of mist one could easily cross the little bridge between without it if you could suppress the phobia monsters for a moment.
At the Gates of Mist. Diamond Couloir below.
The two pitches to Batian were a pleasure on beautiful rock and then there we were on top of Kenya. What an absolutely glorious feeling.
That night we spent in Howell Hut as the Ukrainians had decided to descend after Nelion. We shared a Swedish dehydrated bag of Beef Stroganoff that remains among one of the best meals Ive had on Earth. Meanwhile the fires continued to burn below and all around us, creating a sight of epic scale. Like the hobbits on Mt Doom we had conquered the mountain but most importantly we had conquered that needling temptation to give up or turn back. Ross’s dog like instincts were right (again).
Ross and Julian relaxing after the climb on Nelion at Howell Hut
Mt Kenya is an achievable goal that more people should attempt. In the hands of a good guide and with the confidence built from a fitness and technique program like Fit For Mt Kenya this is something within the grasp of so many people. Show your Kenya pride. Show your world pride. And get on it.
