A group of Orangemen has gone on their longest march ever - travelling 70km and climbing almost 5,900 meters in a bid to raise funds children’s cancer charities.
The team of 24 made it to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro and in the process raised more than £269,000 for Angel Wishes and The Children’s Cancer Unit Charity.
The lads, from Banbridge, Co Down, finally got to climb the Tanzanian peak after an earlier trip to Africa’s tallest peak was put back due to Covid. The months waiting were not wasted, however, with training treks in the Mournes and charity money gathered up for a cause close to the group’s heart.
Read more: Orangemen close in on £100,000 raised for charity with a different kind of marching
Stuart Magill, a member of LOL 20 in Banbridge, said the arduous ascent was “emotional” as those involved remembered young Adam Watson whose battle with Leukaemia had inspired their fund raising efforts. Adam passed away in August, adding to the trip’s poignancy.
He said: “It was tough all right and from the start to the top of Kilimanjaro you went through about five different climates from rain forest to ice and snow at the top, but I’m just proud that all 24 of us made it to the top. How ever tough it was it’s nothing compared to the kids who have to go through treatments like chemotherapy. It’s been turbulent year with losing Adam and it was certainly emotional when we set off with Adam very much in our hearts.”
Stuart said that what the crew “lacked in fitness they more than made up for in positive mental attitude”. The mammoth trek was around three years in the planning, but culminated with a six day hike to get to the top fo the 5,895 meter mountain and back down again. In Facebook posts, the Hiking for Little Heroes team described how the first five days were “extremely enjoyable and picturesque but the summit climb was the hardest thing any of us have ever done, it was far steeper than any of us had ever thought plus the body just isn’t equipped to be at them heights with the lack of oxygen”.
While the total hike was 70km, it was the final push that really saw the lads dig deep physically and emotionally. Stuart says before the final push he reaed out “an inspirational text message I had received from Sara Watson on the day we left for Tanzania wishing us well on our trip, to say there was alot of emotion in tent was a understatement”.
On the group’s Facebook page, where followers were kept updated of their progress, he added: “From base camp to Uhuru peak was just 5k but it took us 8½ hours. To put that into perspective, 1 lap of Craigavon Lakes is 5k and takes just 50 mins, that should give u a idea of how slow the pace was. Even at that slow pace it was impossible to talk to who ever was in front of you as u would have to stop to catch your breath but when we stopped for a break every 1 hour you could see the fellas going round each other checking up on them and encouraging them, we were determined to get to the top with the full group.”
But make it they did and the group all arrived in Banbridge on January 7 to rest ahead of finishing off their fundraising efforts. If you would like to support their fundraising you can do so via this link https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/kilimanjaroni.
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