Essential Items to Pack When Hiking Kilimanjaro to Make A Difference

We recently reached out to Joey and Gina, who participated in one of our recent annual Make A Difference Now charity hikes. They hiked to the rooftop of Africa, Kilimanjaro this year to raise money to educate the vulnerable children we support. We asked to hear what their top essential items were for their hike.

Top 5 Must Haves

1. Altitude sickness pills
   “My Dr only gave me eight and that was enough.” - Joey

2. A Scrubzz Disposable No Rinse Bathing Wipes
   “When wet, they foamed up with soap to wash, so take these!” - Joey

3. A small backpack(Water, a few snacks: headlamp, hand warmers, warm layers, face mask)

4. Trek Poles

5. Sunscreen
   ”Make sure not to touch your eyes after applying sunscreen. "Put sunscreen on your hands they too will get burnt too!"  - Gina
   

Top 3 Things you wish you would have known before traveling to Africa:

1. No matter how much you prepare for Kilimanjaro, you aren't prepared.

2. Dollars are accepted almost everywhere but not credit cards.

3. Women are expected to wear ankle-length skirts or pants.
   

Top 4 Places to Purchase Gear From

1. The “Let Go!” app:  Finding parkas
   “The app was amazing for finding parkas. I found mine (originally $250) for $20” - Joey

2. Thrift Stores: For things you would never use again

3. eBay (brand new)
   “It saved me $150 on hiking boots!” - Joey
   

5 Things to Always Have in Your Backpack When You Travel

1. Headphones

2. Battery Chargers

3. Sunscreen/Hat

4. Google Translater App

5. Pain medicines / Daily vitamins
   

3 Things to Always Have in Your Backpack

1. Phone

2. Diamox and pain medicine 

3. Water
   

Keep Kilimanjaro clean

“I used all the designated trash bags provided by the hiking crew. Also, rent the toilet, trust me, it's the best thing you can do on the trek!” - Joey
”I brought my own washcloth. No plastic bottles” - Gina

Extra Tips

“Carry as little as possible on the trek. Put about four liters of water in your daypack before you leave your home so you can see how much that alone will weigh. Also, anticipate your hike days to be about 5-6 hrs each day. Trust your guides, they know the environment and the signs to look for when someone should not continue on the trek."

You are never prepared enough for Kilimanjaro, 

“Bring an unlocked phone with you and buy a sim card and data in Moshi. I spent $25 and got 10gb of data on an old iPhone 6 and this is how I kept in contact with social media and friends/family. the data lasted me the entire 3 weeks I was there and I used it a lot!!!” - Joey

Are you ready to get trekking for charity?

Head on over to our Charity Hikes page to check out the upcoming Make A Difference Charity Hikes. See you there!