Distance to walk: 200,000 footsteps (160 kms to you and me)
Time to walk: 9 days
Recommended water intake: 27 litres in total
Anticipated number of snorers per dormitory: 3
Number of home comforts along the way: 0
Foot soak at the end of it all: priceless

This September I’m setting out on an epic journey: taking part in a sponsored walk which covers the final stages of the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela in Northern Spain.  We’ll be walking in rain and shine, carrying whatever we need on our backs and staying in the traditional refuges along the way (very basic!).

It’s a route that’s been walked or ridden by pilgrims for centuries each person doing so with a different intention or purpose. My reason for embarking on this challenge is to raise funds for the work of CAFOD. This is no staff perk. I’m paying all my transport costs and overheads myself so every penny of the money I raise with your help will go to CAFOD’s long term development work helping poor communities overseas.

And let’s get it in perspective:
I’ll (hopefully) have a roof over my head each night.
I’ll be able to buy plasters for my blisters and painkillers for my aching limbs.
And I’ll be walking no more each day than many women walk every day to collect clean water for their families.
But if my efforts mean that one family in Bangladesh can have a safe and secure home, that families in Nicaragua can have access to basic medicines, or a community in Zambia can have a local supply of clean water then I think it will all be worthwhile.

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