Honduras RPCV Dr. Leo Alonso wants to conquer Mount Kilimanjaro



"It"s a personal challenge. It"s always a feat of endurance and pushing yourself to new limits. I"m not a mountain climber," said Alonso, who was born in Santiago de Cuba and came to Miami, Florida, in 1960.

Honduras RPCV Dr. Leo Alonso wants to conquer Mount Kilimanjaro

Cuban doctors want to conquer Mount Kilimanjaro
By Marisella Veiga
Special for Eco Latino

Two Jacksonville emergency room doctors have self-prescribed a little more strenuous physical training these days to prepare for an outdoor adventure they"ve always wanted to take--a climb to the summit of Africa"s highest mountain.

Dr. Leo Alonso and Dr. Rick de la Cruz, both emergency room doctors who work at both Orange Park Medical Center and Memorial Hospital, will leave for Tanzania, Africa, on Jan. 25 with three others with the same goal. After a four-day, three-night safari in the Serengeti area, they plan a seven-day hike to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro.

Mount Kilimanjaro is composed of three volcanoes: at 12,395 feet is Shira, which is extinct. Mawenzi is dormant and rises to 17,564 feet. Finally, Kibo is the youngest volcano. Also dormant, it soars to 19,340 feet, claiming fame as the mountain"s highest peak.

"It"s a personal challenge. It"s always a feat of endurance and pushing yourself to new limits. I"m not a mountain climber," said Alonso, who was born in Santiago de Cuba and came to Miami, Florida, in 1960.

His wife Reagan ­ a pediatric I.C.U. nurse and an outdoors person ­ also wanted to participate.

"I want to go," said Reagan Alonso who met his husband in the Peace Corps in Honduras from 1981 to 1983. They married in 1985 and have two children, Alejandro, 15, and Gwen, 14.

"I really don"t have any fears about their climb," she added.

However, the trip was quickly becoming a "guys" trip," so she did not press her husband.

"I"ve been very encouraging," she said. "I know these guys are going to have a wonderful time and come back with tons of stories."

Then she laughed, "I go to Park City, Utah, skiing, and this year I can do it with a little less guilt."

One of Alonso"s former medical school friends had the idea to make the climb. Work obligations did not allowed him time to make the trip, so Alonso took the lead. He invited de la Cruz, who asked other friends to join the group.

The men hired an outfitters group called Zara to serve as guides.

They will ascend on the Machame Route, which is more scenic and even longer than many of the other available routes.

The trade-off is there are fewer people on that route, said Alonso.

The group will hike for seven days to the summit.

"I"m sure we"ll be tired the last few days," said Alonso. "But I also know we"ll have a sense of pride in our accomplishment."

When this story was posted in February 2006, this was on the front page of PCOL:




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