Harrogate Brigantes Rotary Club heading for top of world with charity trek

It will be the culmination of the Club’s latest venture – a virtual expedition up Everest – to raise money for its Covid Relief Fund.

The fund has already given away around £10,000 to help relieve the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Club members said the pandemic had made conventional fund-raising very difficult so the Club had looked for innovative ways of raising money.

The virtual Everest climb is the latest and biggest. Project leader Graham Chilvers said: “We aim to get some 20 Club members to base camp and then a party of six will start up towards the summit. To succeed between us we will have to walk more than 1,500 miles and climb 1,000,000 feet.”

For some weeks now Club members have been getting miles in the bank by pounding lanes and fields, trekking across the Yorkshire Dales and climbing anything that can be climbed locally. Steps up to Knaresborough Castle, stairs in a high-rise apartment, even the hill at the back of a member’s house – all are grist to the mill. Graham Chilvers has devised a formula that enables him to translate our Yorkshire miles and feet of ascent into Everest miles and feet – quite different animals! Everest’s are steep. They have to take account of altitude, gradient, weather and under-foot conditions. An Everest mile can be many Yorkshire miles. But we’re well on the way now and so our virtual climb will begin today (August 27). From then on you can follow our virtual progress in the Himalayas via daily updates on our website or Facebook and Twitter pages.

You can help us by donating via the website (www.rotaryharrogatebrigantes.org.uk) or by accessing the Facebook and Twitter pages (@ HarrogateBrigantesRotaryClub; @Harrogate_BrigantesRC).

And from club members on the Everest slopes – “Thankyou”.