Malaria in camp

The really unique element to the Ruwenzori Mountains, is the vegetation. We walked through three vegetation zones today. The Ruwenzori circuit follows a river until its confluence with an additional one. Near the confluence, we take the right (north) branch. The return will come in on the left branch. The initial day will be re-visited on the exit to the park gate.

The day was a blur of photos and gentle rain slowly moving in. To add some spice, we ran across some occasional boggy ground. The definition of trail here, is sticks and logs laying on/in the ground so you can walk, rather than wallow. You would be unable to go far with out the ground preparation. I did the best I could to stay on the logs, but as many disappear underwater (muddy water), there is an element of faith that some prankster did not saw the invisible part out. In fact, that must have been the case each time I found myself boot-topping in wet mud. The type that is trying to pull your boot off your foot. The Muckboot must have been designed for here, because it is ...pretty... mucky. With the frequent high steps, my Marmot Precip rainpants were mud up to the crotch, on the inside of my legs.

Tomorrow, we will hit the more extensive bog.

When arriving at the John Matte hut, I tried to log a GPS location, but the satellites were not cooperating. The steep ridges on both sides of us block out any satellites near the horizon. I am also sending out daily SPOT Satellite Messenger notes. Africa is a new area for SPOT.  

In review, all the 'pings' worked well. 
 
The SPOT Messenger is a very cost effective device and seems very dependable. Messages also include Google Earth links to our location. When I sent one from a summit, I heard wails of complaint from a friend, neck deep in school. Sorry Bill, I didn't mean to rub it in quite so hard. I was trying to be gentle. My intention was to alert family and friends that we were doing well.

A second button will call for help and the operator is allowed a moderate length message. The message is pre-written, having been uploaded online, with the email and text message addresses prior to the trip. The crux is what to say on the help message. Finally, there is the 911 signal. I can only guess that, here, they send out the National Guard. For 911, there a single contact person, with phone numbers. Here, you can also write up a profile of the participants, for the rescue folks. The SPOT Satellite Messenger is a valuable piece of gear. I think it would be negligent to not have one as a professional, with paying clients, or students. It is the least expensive way to ensure communications.

While I am milling around with various pieces of technology, Vittario approaches me with, "One of the porters has Malaria. Do you have any medicine for him?" No, I don't have any Malaria treatment medicine, just our daily pills. After a moments thought, I pulled out my Kindle. On it, there a couple of medical books. After lots of reading between the lines, it became clear the same medicine for prophylaxis is used for treatment. The book called for 1 gram in treatment, of course of a different drug than we were carrying. I am sure our meds are new to the area, so the Malaria is not resistant to it. The info that came with the drug, Doxycycl, from the pharmacy was consulted as well. None gave any guidance for our situation....


My partner and I concluded to give the porter some of our meds. The devil being, how much? If 100mg is a daily prophylaxis, a gram of Old Standard is treatment, then,.... let's try 200mg of new-on-the-block Doxycycl. Give him some Mortin for the fever (it's all I had) and lets give him 2 hours. We'll give him more D if we need to.

I kept the medical record on the Kindle, as a note in the Malaria information of Medicine for Mountaineering, a standard medical text. Over the years, I have likely read it 6 times. I still can't remember a thing in it.

                 26 yr old pt
                 lost his appetite. vomited a small amount. chills.
                 fever/headache. has history of malaria. with last
                 about 1 year ago.
                 vomited 15:00
                 we were notified 17:15.
                 elevation...11,000ft?
                 rr 16/18 easy and regular. he is well acclimated.
                 carrying here often.
                 sctm color good. temp warm. moist.
                 pt complains of fever. I do not feel a significant
                 warmth. we have no thermemeter.
                 last oral intake. drank a liter of water, hoping to
                 reduce the headache.
                
                 17:30 gave pt 2- 100mg doxycycl
                                       2- 200 mg Motrin

                 18:15 pt feeling better
                 19:15  pt was encouraged to get up join crew by fire
                 drink some tea and eat something. i was told he did.
                 20:30 pt was given 3rd doxycycl. 3 for day, from
                 17:00 to 20:30

             ....plan
                 pt and strong friend will begin walking out in the
                 morning. rms will send up porters to help with the walk
                 out.
                 we will send the pt with doxycycl for 3 sets of two
                 caps. we will send equal amt of motrin.
                 send off with- food
                                      foam and sleeping bag
                                      sufficient clothing
                                      meds record

23% of folks in Uganda have Malaria. it is common knowledge here.
The moral I walk away with, 'learn the common ailments of the country you are visiting. Carry some meds for these ailments. A unique book, for just this situation is, Where there is no Doctor. There is no digital copy for the Kindle- hear that Amazon? It is an important resource, akin to John Muir's, Keeping you Volkswagen Alive.

Houston, we're missing a cable

I am so disappointed. I have left two cables at home. One to connect the Amazon Kindle to charge/ computer and a data cable for the sat phone.
It looks like I have to fall back to the stone age and send postcards to all three of you.

Even at 5/8 charge on the Kindle, I know there are plenty of electricities in there to get through a week of reading and maybe even writing. I have written two dispatches on the Kindle, but have not figured out how to get it out of there, from here.

I will write with pencil and paper, then let fly when we get back to civilisation.

I don't know if this internet connection could even get a photo through it. It took 25 minutes to fire up!???

We go into the Ruwenzori National Park in the morning. We will have 8 porters, for three people: Anthony, the guide and myself.

The weather is hazy, but not raining yet. No chance to prove the excellentness of the Marmot Exum Jacket and Precip full zip pants, yet. I am expecting to prove the modern age to the locals who insist a raincoat must have a poncho over it all.

Actually, those who are the climbers locally, all know nice gear when they see it. Herbert, who will be climbing with us, was playing with the three Metolious  Power Cams, the Keen boots and the Black Diamond ice axe.... I could read the thought bubble coming out of the top of his head, ...."I sure hope you forget this stuff behind..." 

The gear has held up well to its 30 hours or so in a duffel bag. The only fatality was a bottle of suncreme blew its top. I carry multiples  and small ones any more. Andy wrap them in plastic.

Uganda, contrary to what you may see on the internet, is a beautiful place. The people a sweet, kind and gentle. Things seem to run plenty smooth enough and its as hot as I would expect on the equator. I wouldn't want to be disappointed.
I suspect the Ruwenzori will very quickly bound into a hot trip to do.

And the system and people are honest. I was asked by a hurried airport worker if the Amazon Kindle found in the seatback pocket was mine. "Yes, (my heart stopped) thank you." There is a perfectly good excuse for my distraction from checking the seatback pocket, I assure you
"I will need your boarding card and passport." I started to walk with him to the CSI Airplane Seatback Pocket Unit, but he said "Wait here."
As he blazed away with a mission in his step, my heart sunk as I realized I had just given my passport and Kindle to the guy nearly running out of the airport arrival lounge. I was standing there wondering how I was going to explain this event to Anthony and International Mountain Guides.... I suspected this could provide the grand he has wanted to see Paris.
I waited for -only- several l-o-n-g minutes. The same guy half-jogged back in with a bunch of papers. I had two affidavits to sign and I had my passport, Kindle and boarding pass back....

The moral of the story? "Please be sure to gather all you belongings before you depart the aircraft."
I was probably reading (on my Kindle) when they said that,.....

You can't stay dry in the Ruwenzori... really?

So the gauntlet has been thrown down. How wet can this place be?

(Those who have known me for awhile, have seen/heard me make some flippant comment to the tune of, "How hard can that be?" That is exactly when you would do well to excuse yourself from participation in an Andy trip. It is the rare individual who finds themselves happy only when they are miserable.)

"How wet can this place really be?" Pretty much the same apptitude as, "How hard can that be?"

Because I have so much confidence in Marmot's attention to detail and judgment, I am not going to take the obligitary over-the-top-of-everything-poncho. I am so confident, I am not even taking a softshell to wear under the Gore-tex Exum Shell. Just the rain, the shell and me.

I will shun the bulk of my cotton, though.

Long ago, I spent several months on a solo Northwest coast sea kayak trip. Your first reaction might be, "Now that would be some rain!" What it was, was waves. Waves who's crests would turn to smoke (spindrift- water) as they crested. But really, for the most part, it was a beautiful range of mono-chromed gray. It is a good introduction to being wet AND dressing to be wet.
But it wasn't the rain ocassionally seen at the lower slopes of Mount Rainier, where afterhours and days, I couldn't help but wonder how all this water gets up in the air!!!

H.W. Tilman talks about the Ruwenzori tending towards dampness in, Snows on the Equator.

The first expedition with an eye on climbing in the area appears to have been shut down by the weather. More likely that AND dense brush.

So, what is the keep dry plan?

• I have seal-a-mealed the maps.

• I have triple seal-a-mealed a spare camera.

• We have a hundred or so nice weight plastic bags that are a working man's size for keeping small things dry-9" x 18". I have always been lees than tolerant of zip-lock bags. If I want a bag to be re-used and dry, I want a knot in the top of it. Triple bag it and even my toilet paper should stay dry.
• There are about eight varying sized Sea to Summit dry bags in the gear bags. I am tending towards lighter weight fabrics for the smaller ones.
• I am taking an Amazon Kindle, which will be packaged inside foam, inside some fitted aluminum trays I have had around for about a hundred years or so. I will duct tape the joint. Not with any old duct tape, rather, Gorilla Glue tape (or brand, or whatever they call it. The glue is more tenacious and the fabric is thicker.) On the Kindle is the first aid book, the Duke of Abruzzi's account of their turn of the century trip, materials for a high school class I'm trying to keep going while away and a continuing six-month mountaineering class. I'll throw in a few newspapers and it's a good way to spend a rainy day.

          As H.W. Tilman said about Patagonian conditions, "If you wait for good weather here, you will        never do anything." I suspect we won't have rain days.

• The ground is muddy low down on the approach to the mountains. I have a pair of knee high rubber boots on the truck (I work full time in the pipeline industry these days). I don't think my feet would fare well in a basic rubber boot. Instead, I have gotten a pair of Muck Boots, Wetland model. They talk about being breathable on the hangtags. Yeah, and I am going to retire someday. HOWEVER, I wore them for days on end, in snow, driving, and just keeping them on my feet. With cotton socks on. My feet are no wetter in them, than in a pair of leather work boots, and quite a bit dryer than in plastic mountaineering boots. Great boots. I am confident they will perform.
• The details are the success or failure of systems though. How do you shingle a roof? Everything above sheds water to the outside of what is below. I may want my rain pants protected by the boots, but that would funnel water inside. The pants will take a beating, but, outside they stay.
• Sailors back in the glory days (square-rigged, multi-masted, mostly wooden ships) would add 'body and soul' lashings in poor weather, say rounding the horn. These would be rope ties around the waist of pants, outside of coat, wrists and scarf up the neck as well as you can. Top it off with a good hat- a souwester in the fishing trade and a porkpie hat in the clipper ship world. I would be foolish to not learn from hundreds of years and millions of days of experience. I have added a Marmot full brim Precip hat.
• gloves are for dry weather. I'm hoping to toughen up my hands and wear more clothing to drive heat to my fingers.
• liner socks. constant wetness will drive me to use liners. Normally, I would consider them a tad sissy, but as I prune up, I will don the feather boa and the rest of the attire.
• The rest, I hope is good planning and foresight. Pack the pack so I don't have to rummage around much. Line it with triple trash bags. Don't plan on a pack, loaded tightly, being capable of keeping water out. With all the pressure from the inside, water will seep in

So how wet could it be anyway? Come on.