Their story, in their words…
This summer, the Mark Evison Foundation provided us with a wonderful opportunity- hiking over 100 kilometres of the West Highland Way and then climbing Ben Nevis. Along the way, we wild camped, cooked our own food, and navigated ourselves. In the process, we raised £1700 for , the Mark Evison Foundation.
This project was ambitious, but we went into it excited and confident. However, by day three of the walk, tired legs and painful feet began to erode our spirit. Climbing the ‘Devil’s Staircase’ was as difficult as it sounds, and the ceaseless rain dampened both our clothes and our spirits. Despite this hardship, we pushed on, and our strength and resilience grew as we got closer to our goal. Finally, we summitted Britain’s tallest mountain on legs that had already walked half the length of Scotland.
This walk was difficult, but it was hugely rewarding. Along the way, we combatted blisters and midges, but we also learnt more about each other and became even closer as friends. We picked up new practical skills (this was the first time any of us had taken on anything remotely close to what we achieved), but we also gained confidence and found in our persistence mental and physical strength we didn’t know we had. It is a rare opportunity to take on such a challenge, and we are infinitely grateful to the Mark Evison foundation for providing it. We will cherish the memories we made, even those from the days we didn’t think we would finish.
Our thanks to go out to all the member of the Mark Evison Foundation and we hope they will continue giving young people like us tremendous opportunities for years to come.
