The oldest man to conquer Mt Kili

When you think of a 85-year old man, an image of a bed ridden person, waiting for death  might come to mind . If your image changes a bit, it might be of a person who stays at home, plays with their grandchildren and uses some of their time to do some gardening if they have the strength. But Robert Wheeler does not embody either of  these stereotypes.  Although the name ‘Robert Wheeler’ hasn’t made headlines in Tanzania, it has become quite popular all over the world. According to World Guinness Records Website, Robert aged 85,  broke the world record for being  the oldest man to climb Mount Kilimanjaro in October 2, 2014. And it sure was a deliberate decision. “Yes, I wanted to demonstrate that older people can remain active despite health problems,” he says.

It took Robert born 15 March 1929, five days to reach the Summit of the roof of Africa and two more days  down the Marangu route.

Robert recalls that once he reached the summit, there was only one thing on his mind;  how to get down. “I was exhausted, but also exhilarated about making it to the summit. Breathing was difficult so the major concern was to start back down.” He recalls how trekking from Marangu to Mandara and Horombo was very enjoyable. The trek to Kibo was harder but enjoyable, however, the night climb from Kibo to the summit was tough. “After seven hours of climbing, my lungs ached, my legs hurt, my back was sore, and it was all I could do to put one foot in front of the other. This was rewarded as daylight came and we arrived at Stella Point. The trek from Stella Point to the summit was beautiful and inspiring. On the right, there was a deep drop-off into the volcanic crater and on the left was a deep drop-off into southern Africa,” he says.

However, this wasn’t his first climb. Robert says that the first time he thought about climbing was at the age of 24 as a off duty soldier stationed in Korea  in Japan. “Another soldier and I decided to climb Mt Fuji. Because it was winter, we were warned that snow, ice, and wind caused much danger. As Army airborne rangers used to hardships, we did it anyway. But late into the  climb we became overcome by hypoxia and hypothermia and faced death, although we did make the summit and survived. Ever since then I have been interested in mountaineering,” he says.

   Robert admits that he was scared at the beginning when climbing Kilimanjaro.  He wasn’t sure that he had the strength, endurance, and altitude tolerance to make it. And as he started the climb, he realised how different it was from all the other climbs he had done. He was much weaker and had to go slower with more dedication and work. But Robert wasn’t by himself. His son, Jack, who accompanies him in most of his climbs, was with him. “My son has a little of both—he has my interest in health and quality of life, had a military career like me, and like me desires to help people meet the challenges of life,” Robert proudly shares about his son. 

Any family would be concern if one of its members declared that he wants to conquer the second highest peak in the word.   “My family thinks it’s  silly and discourages me, but for this last one they gave support after I made the firm decision. My wife June was particularly worried about my health,” he explains.

Robert explains the kind of preparation he had to undertake. After definite arrangements were made in March 2014 for late September, a dry season climb, he started with four mile hikes in the local neighborhood in Webster Grover, St Louis Missouri, three times a week.

This progressed to the closest thing the St Louis’s  flatlands have  to a mountain—the Chubb Train in West Tyson Park ascending 400 feet.  He worked up to seven lap sessions totaling seven miles and 28,000 feet ascent.  When the summer temperature got up to about 100 degrees Fahrenheit (about 38 degree Celsius), this was very uncomfortable. So he continued training three times a week using a stair climbing machine in a local air conditioned fitness center.

During his career in the US Army working with people around the world, he became interested in how people’s  views of meaning in life affects their health, well-being and performance. This related to mountains as symbols of the challenges in life. So when he  retired from the military, he became a research psychologist to find out ‘why’.  His book - ‘Mountains and Minds’ - published in 2010 starts with the foolhardy Fiji climb with the question of why people do such foolish things.

Chapters then alternate between answers from research and mountain climbing stories. It ends with the conclusion that to answer fundamental questions of ‘why’, people have a need to believe in a transcendent power (some form of deity). Not only this, but also live with the uncertainty that they really do not know and that such belief may not be valid.

The desire to get another mountain climbing story involving uncertainty for the second edition of his book ‘Mountains and Minds’ is what initiated his climb, he says. “I am preparing a second edition adding a chapter about ‘living with uncertainty’ and I needed another mountain climbing story involving uncertainty. Kilimanjaro was ideal because it is popular, widely known, accessible, and uncertain for me,” he explains and adds: “It was also an opportunity to setting a new world record and to demonstrate that old people with worn out joints, deteriorated muscles, aches and pains do not have to become ‘couch potatoes’. We can be active enough to climb a high mountain,” he says; something which Robert has been successful in doing.

After such an adventurous life in climbing mountains, is there any other mountain adventure for Robert? “I don’t know,” he says and adds: “But I would still like to visit Mt Sinai in Egypt and Mount Kailas in China.”