Hello! I'm Ash. You probably knew this. But, if you didn't, now you do. Thank you for taking the time to read about what I'm up to.

Like many people, I love the outdoors. Like fewer people, I love dangling precipitously from ropes suspended from high places. This means I know the value of our Mountain Rescue Teams: organised groups of volunteers that provide a vital service every day of the year. Not only do they help those of us that have lost our way in the country, they regularly step in to help search and rescue operations for the police. They trawl rivers, search fast waters, and give aid to devastated homeowners in flooded areas - not to mention assisting those that've decided to go for a wee kayak or swim in those very streets, too!

They do all this whilst continuing to practise and hone their first aid skills, technical ropework, water rescue and search management, and maintaining their bases, equipment and vehicles - not to mention taking time to maintain their own fitness. Again, this is all done voluntarily.

So I've decided to help a cause that I wholly believe in, and frankly after 100 callouts in the last year alone they deserve every bit of support we can give. To that end, I'll be taking part in the 37th Cheviots Challenge on September 1st, 2018, completing the Terry Lynn route. This is 22 miles long, and incorporates 4000ft of climbing - not an easy one!

Any donation is very welcomed and, though this is has been a very basic description of the service they provide, I hope you can see why they are a worthy cause. I know people that have been helped by Northumberland National Park Mountain Rescue. With their deployments increasing, the chances of you encountering them in the future is rising - I hope you see fit to give where you can.

Read more about Northumberland National Park Mountain Rescue here: http://nnpmrt.org/