Setting goals

A good friend of mine is embarking on an awesome journey of a lifetime. He's backpacking around Japan and will then go into China and eventually wind up in Southeast Asia and beyond. I've kept up with his adventure and really long to do my own. As such I've decided I should set some goals.

My first major feat will be no ordinary backpacking trip. No, I intend to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro before I turn 35. As such I have decided that I will climb it the summer before. So in Summer 2016 I will go and climb that mountain.

I've already begun thinking of some things which I will need to do to prepare. The first and most obvious is to start practicing mountain climbing. I've done 2 mountains in the last few months. I've got some plans to do more and will incorporate this goal into future trips. I really want to do some hiking in Wyoming and in New York state. I will use those trips to practice my skills. I also need to start collecting equipment. I have a lot already, but I need to go through and prepare what I have and replace what I can't use.

I'm also confident because I have 6 years to prepare and to plan. I think this goal would be very unlikely of reaching if I were going to go for it in the next 2 years or so, but as it stands now I should be able to do it with few difficulties.

Also, I hope that either before or after Kilimanjaro, I can hit up Kenya as well. I've wanted to go there for years and I see no reason why I can't hit both. If time and money permit I would like to also go to Ethiopia on the same trip. But for right now, I'm setting my sights on the mountain.