Chinese way to hospice help

CHINA trekkers were out in force last weekend – walking about 10 miles from Washington to Chanctonbury Ring and then on to Cissbury Ring.

There is now less than three weeks until the 50-strong group fly east to take part in the Great Wall of China trek to raise nearly £50,000 for St Barnabas House hospice’s new site.

In preparation, the Dream Team, as they have been dubbed, will be walking through the West Sussex countryside every Sunday wearing their team tee-shirts.

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The Herald announced last week our reporter Sarah Dale would be joining the trekkers on the expedition.

Sarah said: “It is so inspiring hearing the reasons why each person is undertaking this challenge of a lifetime.”

Companies The North Face, Berghaus, Brasher, Trespass and Mountain Warehouse have pledged their support to the Herald’s charity mission by donating items of kit for Sarah to take to China, such as walking boots, socks, and clothing, and offering discounts.

Good kit will be essential for the Dream Team, who will be trekking in steep terrain along the Great Wall for five days for up to eight hours each day.

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The day after the Dream Team arrive in Beijing, they will take a walk round Tiananmen Square and see Chairman Mao’s mausoleum and the Forbidden City.

Day three is when the trek begins along a section which begins at Taipingzhai and returns along the Great Wall to Huangyaguan.

That night, the team will stay at a reconstructed fortress, which promises spectacular views and a real feel for the soldiers who lived in and protected the area.

Days four to seven will see the trekkers put through their paces.

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They will tackle walking past 27 watch towers on a remote section of the wall, a section that hangs precariously onto Yanshan Mountain and is known for its steepness, and will climb 1,000 steps and 20 battlements from the foot of the Great Wall to the top of the mountain.

Jane Walton, from Global Adventure Challenges, the tour operator the team will be travelling with, said: “The scenery is stunning. The wall pitches up and dives down across the rolling green hillsides, disappearing and then reappearing among the forested slopes.”

The Dream Team have also been given permission from the Chinese government to help rebuild a section of the Great Wall and each trekker will be able to place a new brick on a watch tower that needs repairing. To sponsor Sarah, visit www.justgiving.com/Sarah-Dale-China-trek

Other businesses interested in supporting the Herald’s charity mission should call 01903 282363.

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