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MT. MERU |
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RON'S IDEA: hike...shoot...hike...shoot...TO 14,979ft? In two days? Yeah, right!
We would have pushed even further had not our guide, Michael N'gantoluwa advised us to get off the mountain as they were expecting bad weather and none of us were dressed for icy conditions. Before taking our descent, the clouds decided to pass away from the summit of Kilimanjaro and we were able to shoot the great mountain from our location on Meru. We gathered for a production still with Kili in the background. Once all of the cameras had finished snapping, the clouds, as if on cue quickly sealed any view of the entire mountain. As we started down Mt.Meru, we were posed with an even greater challenge--the trails had washed out overnight. As most of the cast and crew had already started the descent, Ron held back with me as navigating through the mud was quite difficult. I literally slid down most of the mountain. My knees felt like they were rubber. Ron and our DP, Willie had dismantled the camera to make its transport easier. Ron wrapped the camera body in his down, leather jacket and we made our descent. DID I MENTION...that on the way down Ron slipped and slid down several feet, in the mud holding onto the camera like it was his child? We still haven't shared that story with our camera house. As we negotiated the fresh mud flows that had been our former trails the day before...what could any of us do but sail on... If the Spirit is willing, all things are possible. |
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Well, the abridged version is...we did manage over 12,000ft, until the rains moved in and washed out the trails and everything else. All of our clothes and supplies were wet and we had to rush through the whole filmmaking process. But we did manage to get some really prime locations and shots (not nearly what we wanted) but beautiful nonetheless. As one overlooks the canopy of forests and the clouds moving below, there is an overwhelming sense of the Divine.
...if we had nothing else, we knew the Spirits were with us. It was definitely an experience and when Ron and I walked into base camp, the crew and all of our porters clapped--I think they all had serious doubts as to whether I would make it off of Meru. Lesson learned: