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On Sunday 11th of February, I am embarking on a 6 day trek to summit Mount Kilimanjaro with three of my closest friends Arron, Lewis and Jack. Collectively through this page, we hope to raise as much money as we can for Cancer Research, a charity that we all hold close to our hearts and have been affected by in some way.

At 5895m/19,340ft, the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro is higher than Everest Base Camp with 49% of the oxygen available at sea level. Kilimanjaro is the highest mountain in Africa and the highest free-standing mountain in the world, it is a challenge that we are incredibly excited to face!

For me personally, this will be a very emotional journey, my dad David Willerton completed the same trek almost 20 years ago and I am excited for us to follow in his footsteps. I remember being 10 years old going on hikes with my dad in the UK whilst he prepared and trained for his trip. This created a love of hiking which I now share with my friends and memories I will cherish for the rest of my life. The picture at the top of the page shows my dad at the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro and he is the one on the right.

In December 2012 my dad was diagnosed with cancer and passed away on the 14th of February 2014. 2024 feels like the right time to honour his memory and raise money for Cancer Research with this trip. We will reach the summit on the 15th of February, 10 years and a day following his passing. I am very proud of my dad's achievement, raising over £2000 for NSPCC, he has inspired me to raise as much as we can in his memory.

If you would like to follow our journey, signal permitting, I hope to share this on my Instagram @benwillerton96

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