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August 16, 2011
A team of 37 doctors, professionals and business leaders who support the Royal Alexandra Hospital Foundation are now climbing Mount Kilimanjaro (5,895 metres) to raise a half-million dollars for orthopedics excellence in Alberta. Here, sharing their progress with the community in his daily dispatch, is the foundation’s Michael Chevalier in Edmonton.
Day: 9
Elevation: 4,750 metres
(see previous daily reports)
KIBO, Tanzania — Under dramatic skies and rugged surroundings, Kibo Hut camp bustled Tuesday as team members readied for their final ascent to Uhuru Peak, the zenith of their Mount Kilimanjaro trek. 
The team was slated to begin the final assault at 11 p.m. local Africa time (2 p.m. Tuesday in Edmonton). The plan is to climb in the darkness, wearing head lamps, to reach Gillman’s Point on the volcanic crater rim of Mount Kilimanjaro.
It will be a demanding four- to five-hour ascent with switchbacks (zig-zag trails, hairpin turns) through jagged volcanic scree (rock debris), perhaps the most challenging leg of the entire expedition. It is here, typically, that most people feel the more extreme effects of altitude sickness in the oxygen-thin air. (For some, altitude sickness can resemble a case of the flu, carbon monoxide poisoning or a bad hangover.)
Once at Gillman’s Point, the team will rest. Their reward? One of the most breathtaking sights of the expedition — sunrise over the Mawenzi landscape.
After daybreak at Gillman Point, the team will trek another three hours to Uhuru Peak —5,895 metres (19,340 feet) above sea level — the “Rooftop of Africa” and the highest point on the African continent.
On top of the physical demands of climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, the team also faces mental challenges to achieve their goal.
Although there are 35 people making their way to the summit as a team, each individual experiences their own private thoughts, doubts, wishes and expectations. For climber Burke Perry, the Kilimanjaro experience is a mix of both shared and personal moments. 
“As much as climbing Kilimanjaro is a physical challenge, it is very, very much a mental challenge,” says Perry. “I already knew a number of people on this team, but many people I didn’t know. And it’s amazing how close you get through the conversations you have. You hear very personal stories and life experiences that people share with one another.”
For the Royal Alex’s intrepid team of mountaineers, the adventure to scale Mount Kilimanjaro — the rooftop of Africa — is now underway.
Each volunteer climber is paying for their own travel expenses to and from Africa and all costs associated with the climb.
As well, each climber is committed to raise funds for the Royal Alexandra Hospital and its new Orthopedic Surgery Centre, a new building dedicated solely to hip and knee replacements and an exciting new hub of innovative orthopedics research.
With support from corporate sponsors, local businesses and the fundraising efforts of the climbers, the goal is to raise more than $500,000 in support of orthopedics excellence in Alberta.
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