Group of friends climbed England’s three highest mountains Scarfell Pike, Skiddaw and Helvellyn in just one day to raise more than £2,000 for Oakhaven hospice

nell.lazzeri@advertiserandtimes.co.uk

Published: 15:45, 03 July 2023

EIGHT friends walked and cycled between three of the highest mountains in England in just one day to raise more than £2,000 for Oakhaven hospice.

Organiser Richard Grinyer led the pals on a route which started at Wastwater in the Lake District at 4am, from where they walked to the summit of Scafell Pike (978m) battling against rain and strong winds.

The group raised more than £2,000 for Oakhaven

After descending, they rode to Skiddaw (931m) before going on to Thirlmere, which took them to their final summit of Helvellyn (950m).

The friends all met when their children attended the same school, and regularly take on challenges to “stave off old age”.

Daniel Ankerstjerne (62) said: “It was great to complete this after a previous challenge in the Lake District, which involved carrying bikes up the mountains. This led to a few meltdowns and too much for one day.”

The challenge saw the group cycle to the summits

Daniel worked alongside Mike King as transport and logistics managers, Richard Grinyer and Will Tatlow were responsible for map reading and timings, while Gary Watkins is the group’s treasurer.

Dave Nealon took photos and fed the group, while Richard Mutton and Nick Richards were responsible for “raising morale”.