Horizon Platforms Blog

Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro

Horizon Director Rory Duggan was one of a group of 15 who recently climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. The mountain which stands at over 19000’ is Africa’s highest mountain and is in fact the worlds tallest free standing mountain.

The team of 15 guys came from the Powered Access industry and not just from around the UK, but also from Toronto and Florida. A team from NiftyliftSkyjack and Bronto joined Rory from Horizon Platforms, making it a combination of Rental companies and manufacturers.

“None of us had any real climbing experience” said Rory, “the challenge was thrown down last summer and before I knew it I had signed up and there was no turning back”.The climb which took seven days in total was arranged through KE Adventure Travel in Keswick.

“The adventure started before we even saw Kilimanjaro” said Rory, “as a result of a technical hitch at Heathrow Airport, eight of the team missed their connection to Amsterdam and were unable to catch the flight to Tanzania, meaning they had to fly to Kenya and were delayed by several hours”.

“It was a fantastic experience and an incredible feeling of achievement when we reached Uhuru Peak at the summit.  The weather ranged from a sunny 28C on day one, to -15C and snow when we reached the top.  The greatest challenge that we faced was acclimatizing to the altitude.  The lack of oxygen was difficult to cope with and prevented two of the team from reaching the summit” Rory continued.

Rory Duggan on Uhuru Peak
Rory reaches Uhuru Peak

“As enjoyable as the trip was, it is unlikely that I will be attempting anything similar soon.  The weeks of training, sleeping in tents and lack of any creature comforts are not my idea of a relaxing holiday. However if another challenge is put down I may be tempted to try something in the future”.We are certainly glad to have Joint Director Rory back in the office and commend Rory’s great achievement and hard work over the last few months in preparation for the climb.

Emma Hyman – Sales & Marketing