Kilimanjaro | The Unexpected

By Tyler Lee & Greg Morrissey

By KAVU

February 4^th, 2025

Last year, my good college buddy, Greg Morrissey, asked me to climb Mount Kilimanjaro with him and a small group he organized. Greg is the founder of Mountain Goat Movement: an organization that is dedicated to providing transformative adventures while connecting participants to inspiring explorers, scientists, athletes, conservationists, and storytellers.

For the last 14 years, he has facilitated trips and adventures for high schoolers and others to inspire a spirit of adventure and stewardship in the great outdoors.

Greg asked me to take photos and document the trip. Climbing the tallest mountain in Africa sounded tough enough, so bringing film gear on top of this sounded like an even more daunting challenge. But Greg had climbed Kilimanjaro before, and his excitement and energy were persuasive and contagious. Read about Greg’s connection to Kilimanjaro here

My love for international travel and adventure came from my parents and especially my Oma

Growing up my Oma “Grandma” took me on some unreal trips around the world; she opened my mind up to Local-Worldwide travel adventures. No 5-star resorts on these trips. When she turned 80, she wanted me to take her skydiving. I am not a tandem-rated skydiver, but I knew a guy. So, we went skydiving together! 20 years ago, she took me to Tanzania. I remember her saying, “maybe you will come back someday and climb that mountain”. She passed away in 2023 and was busy livin’ until the end.

As I chewed on this decision to climb Kilimanjaro with Greg, I thought…Oma would do it, no questions asked. Send it for Oma!

Off I went to climb and film a trip up Kilimanjaro

The summit of Kilimanjaro is 19,341 feet, which makes it the highest point in Africa. It’s a physical and spiritual hike that draws people from all over the world. We had a small group of 3 young men: two teenagers, Will and Dylan, and a recent college graduate named Brennan.

Regardless of our ages and experience levels, we were all in for quite the adventure!

Of course, climbing Kilimanjaro is not accessible without the leadership and uncanny work ethic of the porters who work on Kilimanjaro – they make the trip truly unforgettable.

Our chief guide and porter, Yesse Lema, is revered for his knowledge, expertise, and kindness. In fact, Yesse has summited Kilimanjaro 540 times! Yesse and his team of porters work with Greg and Mountain Goat Movement, and they share a clear sense of brotherhood on and off the trail.

Once in Tanzania, we spent our first two nights in the Springlands Hotel in Moshi, where we organized our gear, including goods from partners like Grayl and Cocoon.

We hiked the Machame Route and took a 5-day approach to acclimatize to the elevation

Day 1: We hiked through the lush and green “cultivated zone” and bushland.

The Impatiens Kilimanjari is a deep red flower found nowhere else in the world except the forest floor of Kilimanjaro.

I will never forget the stars at night, they were the brightest stars I have ever seen. It felt like they were wrapping around me like a blanket.

Day 2 Rainforest Zone which I like to call the “Dr. Seuss” forest.

The trees made me think of the Lorax. This might have been one of my favorite zones. The moss was like wild tree beards.

Day 3 was absolutely majestic.

We awoke to an incredible sunrise with a beautiful view of Kilimanjaro before hiking higher to the lava tower. Unfortunately, this is where I started to feel the altitude all over my body. It was affecting all of us, and the only thing to do was to keep going one step at a time. “Pole Pole” as they say in Swahili, meaning slowly, slowly. The pacing of this hike really allows participants to observe their surroundings.

When we got to the Lava Tower at 4,600m (15,091ft) all of us were feeling the altitude. Yesse reminded us to stay positive as we often echoed his catch phrase: “strong hearts, strong minds.”

We finished off the day descending from the Lava Tower camping at Barranco Camp 3,900m (12,795ft), which was at the base of the Barranco Wall.

Day 4 started colder than the others as we were high up the mountain, but it was another gorgeous day above the clouds.

I wasn’t sure I could handle the Barranco Wall, and my breathing was rough, but Yesse took great care of me—he shoved giant mittens on my hands and said, “Let’s go.” We started ahead of the group, knowing I’d be moving slower.

Reaching the top of the Barranco Wall felt surreal.

It was a serious mental battle to keep moving.

With the summit seemingly within reach, but my breathing only worsened. It became a mental battle to keep going, each step feeling impossible. Jackson, our assistant guide, had to push me up the last hill. By the time I reached Karanga Camp, I had given it everything. I laid down, hoping to recover for the next day.

However, the mountain had other plans…

Thank God for Yesse and his team as they closely monitored my health. With H.A.P.E., the best way to get better is to descend from altitude. While battling to breathe, I had not realized that Greg was also struggling. He had been battling Lyme Disease for many months before this trip, and the disease reared its ugly head at altitude, causing him to experience hypothermic shock. Yesse made the timely decision to fly us off the mountain via helicopter.

Being forced to turn around felt like a loss, in the moment. I was there to film the hike and make a short film. What kind of film would this be without epic summit footage? The result taught me that you can plan all you want in life, but at the end of the day, you have to roll with reality and what life throws at you.

Thanks to the excellent infrastructure established by Yesse’s team, Brennan, Will, and Dylan continued their summit bid. Will and Brennan summited a day and a half later.

This trip was a HUGE success despite not reaching the top of Africa.

I saw some of the most beautiful scenery. I challenged myself physically and mentally more than I ever had in years. I was reminded that adventures are not about the result. An adventure is being fully present in each moment, and it is even more special when you can share that feeling with others. Greg and I had a few days to recover with a local doctor, reconnect as friends, and reflect on the 4 wonderful days we spent on the mountain together.

Two and a half days later Will, Dylan and Brennan all returned safely to base camp. Greg and I met up with them at the bottom of Kilimanjaro to celebrate the traditional tipping party with the porters, in which we all sang and danced like never before.

WATCH THE FILM BELOW

Footnotes

Story by Tyler Lee & Greg Morrissey | Photos by Tyler Lee | Summit Photos by Brennan Collier and Jackson Kimambo| Greg Morrissey is an educator, explorer, and the founder of Mountain Goat Movement | Tyler is the Marketing Director & Athlete Team Manager at KAVU.