About us

 

Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania.

Jo Davies

 

I should probably start by saying that I'm new to the blogging world. I've never really written before at all so I've no idea if I'm doing this right, but I'm not convinced that anybody other than my mum will read it anyway. I'm writing for myself, for the most part. My friend and I are embarking on an enormous challenge, quite possibly the biggest thing I'll ever accomplish, and I want to make a record of it - something I can look back on in years to come and say 'yeah, I did that, and it was great'. But if you happen to be reading this and you're not my mum or another member of my family that she's bullied into logging on to boost my viewing figures, then hello, you're very welcome! Leave a comment if you drop by, I'd love to hear from you.

 

I work for a research institute that's dedicated to improving end of life care and is very closely affiliated to Marie Curie Cancer Care. In February of this year I was at Marie Curie Hospice Liverpool and noticed an advertisement inviting people to climb Kilimanjaro to raise much-needed money to keep the hospice going. It appealed to me instantly. I got the bug for hiking several years ago and love the challenge of sumitting a mountain - to travel to Africa and climb Kilimanjaro while raising money for such a good cause would be a dream. On a work night out a few days later the topic of bucket lists came up, and I mentioned the Kilimanjaro trek. My friend Tamsin immediately said that she'd love to do it too, and so the idea was born. It was somewhat wine-fuelled at that point, but it was born nonetheless!

 

So, in a little over a year's time Tam and I, having hopefully raised our £8,000 target, will fly to Tanzania and attempt to climb to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro - the very roof of Africa. We'll face exhaustion and exhilaration in equal measure in conditions that change from equatorial to arctic within the space of a day's walk. Altitude sickness in some degree is almost a certainty, as are blisters, aching joints, muscle pain and sleep deprivation, and I'm not ruling out the possibility of complete mental derangement, either. But you know what? I can't wait.

- Jo x