On the way to Uhuru Peak on Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania

After struggling up the tough climb to Stella Point to watch the sunrise on Mount Kilimanjaro, it was time to start heading to the very summit of the mountain at Uhuru Peak. By this point I was standing at well over 5700 metres above sea level, and the air was so thin that I simply had to stop every few metres to catch my breath. At high altitude you could be the fittest person in the world and still struggle to even walk. It is a strange thing, but still, all of the stopping meant that I had time to take in the absolutely beautiful scenery around me.

I took this photo during one of my rest stops. You can see some other trekkers up ahead of me, and every one seemed to be fighting their own battle with the mountain. At this point it really wasn’t far until we reached the top of Uhuru Peak at 5895 metres, but every step is difficult. It seemed to take forever to get there, but it was an amazing feeling when I did. I had conquered Mount Kilimanjaro, and I now felt like I could do anything.