[vc_row][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text]Calum walks the West Highland Way
Chip Shop guru Calum Richardson who runs multi award winning The Bay chip shop in Stonehaven is about to complete a grueling walk to raise awareness for MS. The West Highland way is an ardous journey at the best of times but the group including his wife Viktorjia chose to do it in less than 6 days and decided to wild camp along the route too!
The West Highland Way is Scotland’s most popular long-distance walking route. It stretches 96 miles (154 km) from Milngavie to Fort William, taking in a huge variety of scenery, from countryside fields and forests to loch shores and from open moorlands to rugged mountains. The tour should take most people 8 days (7 nights) to complete.
Accommodation, services and refreshments are also conveniently located from start to finish, providing opportunities for a comfortable and relaxing end to a tough day’s walking, for most folk, but this group pitched up tents at the end of their days, and put up with temperatures not much above zero as they tried to sleep.
Calum’s reason for taking on this task was to promote MS. He said “My sister Karen Has MS and has had for some years but over past 6 months things have moved on a bit faster and it really sinks in at home the tough challenge this brings to her life. I want to show my support for Karen and for all the other people with MS, by raising some awareness and hopefully some money to help develop and support help for everyone.”
At the end of a very hard day one of over 60,000 steps Calum suffered a monster blister which was to hamper him for much of the rest of the route. Later in the walk adrenaline was the only thing to keep him going especially as he completed the devil’s staircase. The day was made slightly easier with a $200 donation from an American walker!
On the second day Calum and the team stopped by at the award winning Real Food Cafe in Tyndrum. Fantastically they were met with their own message on the shops sign, and of course some of their glorious fish and chips.
With restrictions and his own health after a bad spell of long covid, even waking the distance in the time allowed would have been an achievement, but add to that the terrain, climate and everything else that comes with the Highland Way.
Lots of people have signed up to give them support on their Just Giving page. Chippy Chat and Isle of Ely MD John Boutwood today donated £100 to the cause!
He said “I have completed many wheelchair marathons for good causes, and know just how hard a task like this can be. Calum is a great ambassador for the fish and chip trade, and we are not surprised that even with the injury he has carried on with this difficult walk.”
Austen Dack Chippy Chat Publishing Editor said “Bloody well done to Calum and the team for raising awareness for MS and Karen! Whatever he sets his sights on, he seems to achieve. ”
If you would like to give please follow this link to Calum’s page. Thus far over £4,000 has been raised and rising.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″ el_class=”sticky-container”][mnky_ads id=”126076″][/vc_column][/vc_row]
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