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“Standing before us was Mount Kilimanjaro, its summit as vast, majestic, and towering as the world itself, unbelievably white.” That’s how Hemingway described Mount Kilimanjaro.
Lin Yuquan, a female teacher at Yueqing High School in Wenzhou, and her 15-year-old daughter Lin Ziyi were also drawn by this vision.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the first day of the Year of the Horse, they successfully summited Mount Kilimanjaro. Ziyi became the youngest female Chinese climber to reach the top. Each year, around 10,000–20,000 people attempt to climb Kilimanjaro, but only 30–40% succeed.
Over four days, they experienced a 50°C temperature difference, from tropical heat to extreme cold; they traversed tropical rainforests, grasslands, alpine meadows, and deserts.
They also plan to summit the highest peaks on all six other continents and trek to both the North and South Poles. They aim to conquer extreme exploration.
Departure: Heading for Africa’s Roof
Mount Kilimanjaro lies on the border between Tanzania and Kenya, with its main peak being a dormant volcano covered in glaciers.
In reality, it’s far more fascinating than the cold term “Africa’s highest peak” found in geography textbooks. On the eve of the Spring Festival, Lin Yuquan and her daughter Ziyi set off for Africa’s rooftop. They were accompanied by another mother and son.
There are six routes to the summit of Kilimanjaro, each varying in difficulty and scenery. In the end, Lin Yuquan chose the Marangu Route (also known as the Machame Route or “Coca-Cola Route”), ascending from the Tanzanian side and returning the same way. It’s the most conventional and popular route for tourists.
Each day, they could stay in small huts, buy mineral water, soda, beer, and chocolate, and even communicate wirelessly with the park management. Best of all, each campsite offered fantastic photo spots.
Of course, it’s not cheap—each person had to pay $1,960, not including tips. The four-person climbing team included one guide, one assistant guide, one cook, and 12 porters (each carrying no more than 20 kg).
“Kilimanjaro’s mountaineering management system is very mature. Mountaineering is an important tourism industry in Tanzania, and the country runs guide training schools. Local youths can enroll after paying tuition,” Lin Yuquan explained. Within six months, these youths systematically study high-altitude guiding, rescue, and tropical savanna flora and fauna. Only after passing can they graduate; even then, they often start as porters.
Persistence: Crossing Three Natural Zones in Three Days
Mount Kilimanjaro spans multiple natural zones, offering stunning views along the way. The ascent took three and a half days, and the descent just one. For the first three days, it was mostly hiking, about seven hours of walking each day.
The toughest stretch was the final push to the summit. A steep uphill climb over a vertical rise of more than 1,000 meters. Many give up and turn back here. What’s needed isn’t a physical breakthrough, but a mental one.
On January 28, Lin Yuquan and her party of four set off from Moshi Town at the foot of Kilimanjaro. The temperature was 30°C, and they wore short sleeves.
The first day, they crossed African tropical rainforests. Ziyi was especially fascinated by this vast, dense forest. Red soil was entwined with gnarled tree roots. The trees were so tall you couldn’t see through them even looking up; the sky was hidden behind layers of leaves; sunlight filtered through the gaps, dappling the ground; winding streams murmured soothingly. “Walking along such forest paths is incredibly comforting,” Ziyi said, snapping photos nonstop.
The second day, they passed through low shrubs and expansive grasslands. The world suddenly opened up, with blue skies and white clouds overhead. Ziyi spotted breadfruit trees from her textbooks and spherical trees not in any materials. Each time, she excitedly posed for photos beside them.
The third day, they walked across flower-dotted meadows and desert-like stretches of yellow earth. But there was no snow—except on the peaks right ahead.
By then, they had reached an altitude of 4,750 meters, walking among the clouds. At 6 p.m., all four experienced varying degrees of altitude sickness: headaches, nausea, loss of appetite. Lin Yuquan’s friend and her son decided to give up on the summit.
Final Push: Summiting on the First Day of the Year of the Horse
At 11:30 p.m. that night, Lin Yuquan and Ziyi set off again, making their final push for the summit—to greet the first sunrise of the new year atop the snows.
But the path to the top was extremely steep, with every step on volcanic ash and fragmented rocks proving a challenge.
At 6 a.m., the sun above the equator burst forth from the sea of clouds. The mountain and everything around it gradually lit up.
This was Gilman’s Point, at 5,686 meters—the secondary summit of Kilimanjaro. Reaching here earns you a certificate for a minor summit. The main peak, Uhuru Peak, loomed ahead.
But their altitude sickness worsened, and their legs refused to obey. The guide asked repeatedly if they wanted to continue. They hesitated and almost gave up.
But thinking it was the first day of the Lunar New Year, they wanted a good omen—step by step to greater heights. They knew it wouldn’t be easy to try again, so they gritted their teeth and pushed on.
At 9 a.m. on the first day of the Year of the Horse, they reached the summit. “This dormant volcano is so quiet. Its crater is covered in glaciers. You can imagine how powerful it must have been in its prime.”
Dream: Conquer the highest peaks on all seven continents
In fact, two years ago, when Ziyi was just 13, she had already conquered her first snow-capped mountain — Yuzhu Peak of the Kunlun Mountains in Qinghai, standing at an altitude of 6,178 meters. That year, she was in the third year of middle school. Later, she also reached the summit of Muztagh Ata in Xinjiang, which stands at 7,500 meters.
Ziyi is the youngest person to have conquered these two snow-capped mountains. Now, like her mother Lin Yuquan, she has become a national-level mountaineering athlete.
Unlike others confined to training classes, every winter and summer vacation, Lin Yuquan takes Ziyi out to see the world. As a result, Ziyi’s academic performance is outstanding. In the final Wenzhou joint exam during the first semester of her freshman year of high school, she ranked first in her school and second in Wenzhou City.
Reaching the summit of a snow-capped mountain is a lonely endeavor, walking through desolate ice and snow where no one else ventures, with physical and mental strength gradually being worn down. When caught in a dilemma, should you push forward or turn back?
But all of this has been overcome by the resilient Ziyi. Having returned from the snowy peaks, she is no longer impetuous, can endure solitude, and remains composed, even when her grades dip. “It’s like during the climb up the snow mountain, when thoughts of giving up arise. But I tell myself, there are no limits in life, and you can definitely keep going.”
“Now, I have a dream — I hope my daughter can achieve the ‘7+2’.” Lin Yuquan said. The 7 refers to climbing the highest peaks on all seven continents; the 2 refers to the ultimate expeditions of trekking to the North and South Poles. These nine points represent the extreme coordinates of the Earth, the concept of all ultimate destinations, and also symbolize the highest realm of extreme exploration.
