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Siblings hike for little brother
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Two brothers trekked nearly 270 miles across Britain’s first National Trail Pennine Way to raise money for charity.
Richard and Edward Hughes, who are members of 1985 Flitwick Cadet Squadron took 17 days to walk the total 268 miles of the Pennine Way, which is widely considered the roughest long-distance walk in Britain.
The siblings were raising money for Help for Heroes and the Starlight Foundation after their younger brother was diagnosed with lymphoma this year.
Edward, 16, said: “We chose Help for Heroes as they do fantastic work for injured service personnel, who we are honoured to be affiliated to through cadets.
“And we chose Starlight as our younger brother was diagnosed with lymphoma a year ago, and they really helped alleviate his boredom and pain whilst in hospital by providing entertainment, such as games consoles.”
Starting in Edale, Derbyshire and finishing in Kirk Yetholm in the Scottish Borders, the trail crosses the boggy terrain of the Pennines, over numerous mountains such as Kinder Scout, Pen-y-Ghent and Cross Fell, with a total ascent of about 32,000 ft over the whole trail.
The pair used practical skills learned at cadets, such as map-reading and camp-craft, but also said they needed strong self-discipline to keep going every day, despite blisters and assorted injuries
Richard, 19, who is studying medicine at Oxford University, said: “It was very windy and misty, as well as raining solidly for the first few days, which made it pretty challenging.”
This was especially required on the gruelling 27-mile final day over the Cheviot hills, following the English-Scottish border.
Edward, 16, said: “It was the toughest thing we’ve ever done, mentally and physically, but worth it to raise money for our chosen charities, and to see how far we could push ourselves.
So far they have raised over £3,500 for their chosen charities, and are still receiving sponsorship donations.
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Wednesday 22 May 2013
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