Autumn Sarah Lott and her mom Francesca Lott, of Gold River, BC. — a municipality near the geographic center of the island — said the seven-day trek to Mount Kilimanjaro was a wonderful and personal experience. “It was really fun,” Autumn told CBC News. The couple hired a team of professional hikers, including some porters to carry gear and bags, to help make their birthday adventure a reality. Hikers are not allowed to climb Kilimanjaro without a guide. The Tanzanian government also has a minimum age limit of 10 for people who want to climb Kilimanjaro, so Francesca had to prove to the national parks board that Autumn was an experienced hiker who had completed many other hikes in the past. Francesca Lott says they had to prove to the local national parks board that Autumn, pictured here, was an experienced hiker, as the minimum age to climb Kilimanjaro is 10. (Francesca Lott/Submitted) They include the Nookta Trail, a 37km trail that runs along the west coast of Nootka Island in B.C. “We usually do a big hike for Autumn’s birthday every year,” Francesca said. “As far as the hike, I knew she could do it because we’ve done so many things in the country, so I knew that in terms of difficulty, it wouldn’t be a problem for her.” Francesca said visiting Africa was on her to-do list before she fell pregnant in the Autumn. The couple prepared for this trip by hiking in Strathcona Provincial Park and the Grouse Grind. The mother-daughter duo flew to Tanzania and began their trek up the 5,895-meter mountain on July 2, Francesca said, reaching the summit at 7:45 a.m. on July 7 – the seventh birthday of autumn. Autumn and Francesca Lott take a picture on top of Mount Kilimanjaro with some of the local hikers and porters. Hikers are not allowed to climb Kilimanjaro without a guide. (Francesca Lott/Submitted) He said just above the 4,000m altitude, Autumn had a brief bout of altitude sickness, but it disappeared quickly. “She had a headache and was vomiting, but it lasted maybe half an hour and she was fine,” Francesca said. “You can’t really prepare for it. Where we are on Vancouver Island, the highest mountain is only about 2,000 meters high.” Fall said the hardest part of the hike was near the top where there were a lot of switchbacks. Francesca said she believes Autumn is the youngest Canadian ever to summit Kilimanjaro, the second-youngest girl in the world and the third-youngest person in the world to do so.
They did it “right”
Wayne Pattern, with the BC Mountaineering Club, says Kilimanjaro is a safe mountain to hike as long as hikers take their time climbing the summit to avoid severe altitude sickness. “Mount Kilimanjaro is not a difficult or technical climb,” Wayne Pattern told CBC News. “It’s just a big piece and you can approach it from many angles. There’s no real danger of falling.” He said he and 10 club members are flying to Africa to climb the mountain this summer, and even though the climb is not technical, they are training hard for it. Mother and daughter Francesca and Autumn Lott took seven days to climb Mount Kilimanjaro, one of the world’s highest mountains. (Francesca Lott/Submitted) Pattern said he has climbed several mountains, including Mount Baker in Washington state and Mont Blanc in Europe, both of which are lower than Kilimanjaro. “I’ve never been to Africa and I’ve never been to 20,000 feet before,” Pattern said. “We need six days, which is very similar to what the young lady and her mother did.” He said the group will hike near Mount Meru as a warm-up before climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, but also makes sure to prepare by doing hikes of up to 30 kilometers to build up their endurance and training in places like the Grouse Grind. “This is our warm-up and this will get our bodies used to lifting. You make yourself [as] physically ready as possible,” Pattern said. “Protecting yourself from the elements, being in good shape and then going slow are the key elements,” he said. “Looks like mom and daughter got it right.”
