Sun Run Scouts go the extra mile on 25km midnight hike for EACH
26/06/2010
Over the night of 26-27 June, twelve boys and girls from the 12th Cambridge Scouts gave up their cosy beds to hike 25 kilometres from dusk to dawn and have so far raised almost £1,200 for East Anglia's Children's Hospices (EACH).
The intrepid troopers, aged 10 to 13, set off at 9.29pm sunset from Copley Scout Centre in St Ives. They had to find their way on foot across dark fields and footpaths to their Cambridge HQ before sunrise at 4.39am. All twelve completed the challenge – a major achievement as for most of them it was their longest hike and first through the night without any sleep.
Commenting, novice midnight hiker Charlie Wayne, 11, said: "We had to deal with nettles, mosquitos and cowpats, but luckily the weather was good and we had a lot of laughs. By 2am some of us were dead on our feet but we all kept each other going. Getting back to HQ before sunrise felt brilliant and made it really worthwhile."
Graham Steed, leader of the 12th Cambridge Scouts, who lead the walk with a small team of adult volunteers said, "We are incredibly proud of them; they achieved something really special. Hiking 25km is a tough undertaking, even for an adult and for anyone of scout age it is exceptional, particularly at night, in unfamiliar surroundings. They should be very proud of themselves and will all be receiving their Community Challenge Award."
"We hear so many negative things about young people, but that's not been my experience as a scout leader. More often than not the youngsters that we see at scouts every week are hard working, cheerful, adventurous, compassionate and quite willing and capable of going the extra mile for others - literally! It's a real honour for us to support East Anglian Children's Hospice, a fantastic organisation that does do the most amazing things in the most difficult circumstances."
Donations to the Sun Run fund are still welcome, go to: http://www.justgiving.com/12thCambridge-Sunrun-2010
