I’ve climbed Kilimanjaro more than 250 times (and I am still not bored)

“Kilimanjaro is a snow-covered mountain 19,710 feet high, and is said to be the highest mountain in Africa. Its western summit is called the Masai ‘Ngaje Ngai’, the House of God. Close to the western summit there is a dried and frozen carcas of a leopard. No one has explained what the leopard was seeking at that altitude.”
― Ernest Hemingway, The Snows of Kilimanjaro and Other Stories

Climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro, the highest free-standing peak in Africa, is a bucket list dream for most of us. For Justaz Molel, an Intrepid Travel guide, it is a monthly sojourn. And even though doing anything over and over again could turn it into a quotidian task, Molel says that he never ceases to marvel when he reaches the snow-capped peaks.

The guides who help get visitors up to the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro are some of the most well-trained in the world. Not only are they skilled at climbing the mountain, they are skilled at reading people, in making sure their guests are getting the most out of this once-in-a-lifetime experience.

We caught Justaz in between climbs (no small feat) to find out what it is like to call this incredible mountain home.

Yahoo Travel: Being a guide in Tanzania is a great gig and requires a lot of training. How did you land this job?

Justaz Molel: I got this job after two years of studying (post-secondary education) as a tour guide. Then I did training in Kilimanjaro National Park as a guide and got my full route guide license. After all of that training (in 2003) I applied for the post at the company called “The Adventure Company" ( T.A.C ) where I got my start. Then in 2009 I started guiding for Intrepid Travel where I have been ever since.

Yahoo Travel: Tell me about your family and where you grew up.

Justaz Molel: I was born and raised in A small Village called Kijenge in Arusha Town which is the “heart of tourism” for all of the Northern National parks of Tanzania including the Serengeti, the Ngorongoro crater, Lake Manyara National Park and Mt. Kilimanjaro. I was raised by a single mother who is now 66 years old. She is a strong and independent woman with five kids. I am married with my own four kids, one of whom I adopted when I was in high school.

Yahoo Travel: What is the best part about the job?

Justaz Molel: The best part of my job is meeting new people every time I do the trek. Every climber is different from one another. I get to share new ideas and combine them with their expectations. That is the best part. On a typical Intrepid Travel we’ll have travellers from at least three different continents and it is always so inspiring to hear about their hometowns and the places they have visited.

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Yahoo Travel: What is the most challenging thing about your job?

Justaz Molel: The most challenging part of my job is when you meet climbers who have climbed other mountains around the world. There are radically different rules in each place and they want to apply them here. Some people want to make fire or bring alcohol into the park. They want to walk fast or use shortcuts. As a mountain guide, you know to respect the mountain and the surroundings and we have to follow the local rules.

Yahoo Travel: Let’s not forget that you are climbing a mountain. What is the scariest part of your job?

Justaz Molel: The scariest part of my job is when I have my group with me on the final ascent to the summit (in the middle of the night) and see other guides from other companies drag and pull their passengers who are in serious bad conditions to the summit. This makes me feel very low as I know it starts make my group feel unsafe and some of them start to ask lots of questions. When I answer them I need to be very calm, comfortable with full confidence and very encouraging. Intrepid Travel always keeps passenger safety as our number one priority.

Yahoo Travel: What is the coolest thing you have ever seen/done?

Justaz Molel: The coolest thing I have ever done on Kilimanjaro was organising a wedding on the summit. We were at 5,895 metres with a priest, best-man, maid-of-honour, bridesmaids and twelve other guests!

Yahoo Travel: Tell me about the people you have met while guiding.

Justaz Molel: I meet all kinds of people from every country. I meet professionals and backpackers and during each trip we get to exchange ideas and learn from each other.

This article originally appeared on Yahoo Travel.