E-K's Kilimanjaro Challenge Page

Thanks for visiting my fundraising page! As you will probably know I’ve been working towards climbing Mount Kilimanjaro for a while now and was due to climb in June 2020 before Covid scuppered the plans. Now on our 4th reschedule and just a little later than originally planned we are due to fly out on 20th January 2022. One positive is that it has given more time for training (even through lockdowns) as I haven’t stopped with my commitment to be as ready as I can possibly be when the time finally arrives to go. Over the last couple of years it’s been bike rides and local walks then as lockdown restrictions eased I completed the 100km South Coast Challenge walk from Eastbourne to Arundel over 2 days, I climbed Ben Nevis and re-conquered the Yorkshire 3 Peaks. Am I ready - who knows but I’ve done my best to be and I will give it my all to reach the highest point in Africa. The official countdown began in 2019 when after taking on and completing an open water swim I felt the urge to push myself a little further while at the same time trying to raise some money for a great charity - Cancer Research UK. I like a challenge, something that pushes me out of my comfort zone and gives me a focus and for some years now this one has been muttering away in the back of my mind, to climb Kilimanjaro, the world’s tallest freestanding mountain, the roof of Africa at 5,895m (19,340 ft). Over a 7 day period we’ll trek for up to 12 hours a day, the weather switching from boiling hot to bitterly cold and undoubtedly there will be rain. It’s pretty clear that we’ll suffer from some level of High Altitude Sickness so have a raging headache and nausea for a good few days. We’ll be sleeping in tents, washing in a bowl and don’t get me started on the toilet facilities!! If it was going to be easy it wouldn’t be the kind of challenge we want. On the plus side I know how much of a life enhancing experience this will be and to make it even more worthwhile I’m raising funds to help in the fight to find a cure for a disease that affects so many of us. Cancer is a disease that touches so many families and over the last few years I’ve watched first hand as those that I love bravely face up to their own battles with this hideous disease. Some have sadly lost this fight but others are still fighting, living with it as a constant shadow. To watch loved ones fight the disease is heart-breaking and it has a profound affect not only on the sufferer but also their families, this doesn’t go away it continues long after the initial diagnosis or outcome. Cancer Research UK is one of the many charities focused on trying to find a cure and rid the world of this disease. They’re working to beat all 200 cancers and rely completely on donations; the money we raise will help fund life-saving research to bring forward the day when all cancers are cured. Cancer Research UK stats show that over the last 40 years cancer survival rates in the UK have doubled. In the 1970’s just 1 in 4 people survived their disease for 10 years or more. Today 2 in 4 survive. The aim is to accelerate progress and see 3 in 4 patients surviving the disease by 2034. I’m hoping that we will be able to raise a fantastic sum of money to give to this worthwhile charity and I will be forever grateful for any donation you can make; every penny is appreciated from the bottom of my heart. Thank You