Walking Coast to Coast to Begin a Reverse Journey

A Walk of Solidarity with Refugees

Our target for the C2C walk is to raise £5000 to cover the expenses of the trip and to start a reverse journey

This Refugee Week, during this year’s theme of Courage, I will be taking on a new challenge: walking England’s famous Coast to Coast route; from St Bees on the Cumbrian coast to Robin Hood’s Bay on the Yorkshire coast.

Over 11–12 days, I will walk nearly 190–200 miles across some of England’s most beautiful landscapes: the Lake District, Yorkshire Dales and North York Moors National Parks.

For many people, it is a scenic walk.

For me, it is something much deeper.

Nearly 20 years ago, I arrived in Britain as a child refugee after a long and dangerous journey across Europe. At that time, courage meant leaving everything behind, crossing borders in fear, and stepping into the unknown in search of safety.

Today, courage means something different.

It means returning to those memories. Sharing my story openly. Walking in solidarity with refugees who are still making dangerous journeys today. And beginning to retrace, in reverse, parts of the route I once crossed as a child refugee, this time in freedom, with a passport, safety, and the opportunity to tell a new story.

This Coast to Coast walk is the first step in preparing for something bigger: a future reverse journey back through Europe to better understand what has changed, what borders mean, and what has happened to people still trapped on the same roads I once travelled.

Along the way, I hope to create powerful conversations through storytelling, films, talks, writing and social media updates.

But first, I need to test myself; physically and mentally.

I have not taken on a challenge like this in many years. This walk is my beginning.

Why I’m fundraising

Your support will help cover:

• Basic costs for the Coast to Coast challenge (food, accommodation and transport)

• Walking equipment and preparation

• The larger reverse journey across Europe later this year or next year

• Creating content, awareness work and future storytelling projects

Why support this?

Because stories matter.

Because refugees are still making these journeys today.

Because courage can take many forms; surviving, rebuilding, remembering, and speaking out.

Because freedom, borders, identity and belonging are questions worth exploring.

And because sometimes a walk can become something much bigger.

If you would like to support me as I take these first steps, I would be deeply grateful.

Every donation helps move the journey forward.