07 Apr 2024
When you book this trek, I would advise choosing a pick up spot like cafe de France in the main square as they do not communicate with you about the pick up location and you don’t want to be left wondering if they’re going to pick you up or not.
This trek is really tough, a lot more difficult then we expected, you need a good level of fitness to complete and get to the top. Hiking gear - boots, thermals, head torch etc necessary. Would advise bringing sweets etc for extra energy also.
Our guide, Abdul, was brilliant. I wouldn’t have been able to get to the top without him and he dragged me up there and wouldn’t give up on me. The view from the top is amazing. The trek itself has better facilities than expected - lots of tuck shops with water, chocolate bars and crisps etc. The refuge was much better than expected also - had some western toilets, showers with apparently warm water (although probably no point in showering) and plugs so you can charge your devices. You will need to bring toilet roll though.
The first day is 5 hours of hiking with a lunch break, you reach the refuge, have dinner, then get up at 4am the next day to hike to the ascent, then all the way back down. It’s intense, difficult but glad we did it!