South Yorkshire team climbed 42 peaks in three days

Family and friends of a man who died from an incurable brain tumour took on an incredible 42-peak challenge in his memory.
By The Newsroom
Published 27th Jun 2016, 09:53 BST
Updated 27th Jun 2016, 09:58 BST

Martyn Wright, the son of the late Ron, led the team of five on the three-day challenge in the Lake District which saw see them cover 66 miles and climb a total of 28,000 feet.

They set off on the 11th anniversary of Ron’s death and covered 14 peaks a day in order to stay on track.

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Martyn said: “We definitely under-estimated the difficulty of the challenge we had set ourselves. To climb 42 peaks in just three days is no mean feat, but we did it.

“Sadly, two members of the team had to drop out (due to injury and a family matter) but Steven Jackson and I arrived back at base with many blisters after walking a total of 80 miles (we had guesstimated 66 miles) in a range of extreme weather conditions. On Saturday, visibility was terrible at times and it was so bitterly cold that we felt like giving up on Bowfell, but somehow kept going. Sunday was a different matter entirely - we arrived back exhausted and with sunburn.

“By far the hardest was day one, which included two 3,000 feet climbs within a four hour period. On the summit of Helvellyn I spent some time reflecting on how dad would have loved to have been doing the challenge with us – and again on Striding Edge, which was Dad’s favourite spot. But in reality, Dad was with me all the way. Since his passing I have always walked in his hiking boots, which had carried him hundreds of miles throughout the many challenges he participated in like the National 3 peaks and Coast to Coast. They may well have to be retired after this particular challenge as there are only so many times I can patch them up.

“Memories of Dad kept me going, determined to achieve my goal to raise funds for Brain Tumour Research and awareness of brain tumours, which are the biggest cancer killer of children and adults under the age of 40 yet just on per cent of the national spend on cancer research has been allocated to this devastating disease.”

Leanne Hunt, Martyn’s sister, said: “Thank you to everyone who has donated both online, via sponsor forms or donated to the collection tins.” Visit www.justgiving.com/Martyn-Wright5