Hi and welcome to my fundraising page!

I'm heading out to Africa to tackle some of the biggest white water in the world, not only will I be rafting the Zambezi for 7 days, I'll also be kayaking the first section of the river for 3 days after the trip!

Most of the trip cost will be covered from my own pocket so you can be sure the money you donate will be going to guide dogs and not being used to cover the cost of the expedition.

I leave for Livingstone on the 16th of October and arrive on the 18th, after 2 days travelling I have just one evening to recover before we hit the white water!  The first few days will be a frenzy of rapid after rapid with only short pools to regain composure before hitting the next. 
After day 3 the water starts to flatten out and the rapids are more spaced out, however the rapids are also longer and so are the portages - that's where we carry the boats and all the gear round an unrunnable rapid, the hardest of these portages being the dam site where the gear has to be moved over a large area of very rocky and uneven terrain.

At the end of the trip we meet the truck in a remote Zimbabwean village where the villagers help load the truck and in return we leave them with some food, drinks, bottles, clothes, fish hooks, lines and thanks. 

Thankyou very much for the first donation gratefully received.

Just a little information about what your money will achieve.

£10 is the daily cost of breeding and training each dog

£60 Buys a harness, handle, lead, collar and bell

£100 Provides four long canes

£250 Feeds a guide dog for a year

£600 provides training for one visually impaired person

£1000 (my target) Supports the basic training of a guide dog

£2500 supports the advanced training of a guide dog

£3650 (what I'm going to try to reach by the end of the year) Supports a working guide dog partnership for a year.

To keep going as they are guide dogs for the blind needs over £50,000,000 per year! And they are totally dependant on voluntary donations. There are over 1000 guide dog puppies bred every year, mostly lab/retriever but also German shepherds and labradoodles!

To make sure that no-one is prevented from having a guide dog due to lack of funds the cost to a new owner is just 50 pence, and guide dogs is currently supporting around 4,700 guide dog partnerships in the UK.

I personally know 3 people who have benefited from having a guide dog, the change to their life was not just added independence, having a dog helped to motivate them to get up and out of the house, to take more regular exercise and as a result live a healthier (and probably longer) life.

So please give what you can, small amounts add up and can really make a difference.

Donating through Justgiving is quick, easy and totally secure. It’s also the most efficient way to sponsor me: Guide Dogs gets your money faster and, if you’re a UK taxpayer, Justgiving makes sure 25% in Gift Aid, plus a 3% supplement, are added to your donation.

So please sponsor me now!