‘I conquered Kilimanjaro, but double almost broke me’
After standing on Africa’s highest point for a third time, SABC journalist Gillian Pillay is grateful to be home safe and sound – despite the disappointment of not having completed the double summit of Kilimanjaro she had aimed for this year.
The second leg of the gruelling trek – which Port Elizabeth-born Pillay, 38, had completed twice before – had to be called off when she fell so violently ill that other climbers had to feed her along the way.
“It was one of the most challenging climbs so far – I really struggled,” Pillay said.
“Taking two steps was mentally taxing, challenging and soul-wrenching.
“I suffered from nausea about four hours into our trek, it was so cold that the water in my backpack froze, and when I drank water or ate anything to replenish my energy it intensified my nausea.
“An hour or so from the first point [Gilman’s Point], I broke down.
“I had no energy and I remember whispering to the head of Amnesty International, Kumi Naidoo: ‘help me’.
“I was ready to turn back.” Pillay – who is from Gelvan Park in the Bay’s northern areas but now lives in Johannesburg – said other climbers were her lifeline on the trek when she was at her lowest.
“One of the international climbers and another trekker ran to my aid and gave me water and forced me to eat caffeinated chocolate which literally injected life into me.
“If these guys didn’t come to my aid, I would have surely turned around.
“I broke down for a second time metres away from Gilman’s Point and again was thrown a lifeline of water by another climber.
“That’s how I made it up to Gilman’s Point. From there, it was another mentally gruelling 2½-hour trek to Stella Point and Uhuru.
“Along the way, strangers who passed by spurred me along.
“One climber was walking back from Uhuru and encouraged me and gave me his energy sachets.
“I will never forget this magnanimous gesture.”
Pillay, who summited “Kili” for a third time in celebration of what would have been Nelson Mandela’s 100th birthday, was fuelled by her passion to ensure that girls from her former high school, St Thomas Secondary School in the northern areas, benefit from the number of steps she takes.
“My stance has always been, if I can change the life of just one child through this campaign, I have achieved so much more than I set out to do.
“And to stand at Uhuru Peak, which means freedom in Swahili, on what would have been Madiba’s 100th birthday, fighting to unburden the girlchild – what a legacy,” she said.
“To be uncomfortable and vulnerable for those few hours was life-changing, and Gillian got to hoist her school’s flag at Uhuru – what a moment, what ablessing.”
Having completed the climb with her colleague, Thabo Madilola, the pair had to face the demanding task of sending content back to the SABC.
“This was a working trip for us – we walked and worked – so we went into this trip exhausted but still focused.
“We were aware of what a double summit would entail and knew it hinged on our physical and mental state after the first climb,” Pillay said.
“While everyone else was having a warm meal at the dining hall, we were sitting outside in the freezing cold waiting for our story to go through to Johannesburg.
“Sending one TV news story that was under two minutes long through to headquarters took us two hours.”
After conquering Kilimanjaro three times, Pillay has now set her sights on Everest base camp next year.
She fell so violently ill that other climbers had to feed her along the way