A WOMAN has raised £2,600 for a Malvern animal charity by climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.
Pam Davenport has now reached her fund-raising target for the Worcestershire Animal Rescue Shelter in Newland after completing the challenge.
The Bromyard resident spent a year training and preparing for the hike which she embarked on in September.
She set off from Kilimanjaro National Park in Tanzania with 29 others including guides and porters, trekking through rainforest to the first major milestone Mti Mkubwa – aka Big Tree Camp – 2,780m above sea level.
Pam described the next day as ‘the big one’ walking for more than ten hours and gaining more than 700m in height which caused altitude sickness to set in.
The next leg of the challenge saw the group actually descend lower to acclimatise before coming across one of the highlights of the journey Lava Tower – 600ft of solidified lava sticking out of the ground.
The Bromyard woman said the following day was the best part of the challenge climbing up the ‘exhilarating and slightly dangerous’ Barranco Wall. The next 24 hours saw the group reach the 5,895m Kilimanjaro summit – Uhuru Peak – but only after a gruelling nine-hour non-stop hike throughout the night.
Pam who has dubbed herself the ‘Kili Chili Climber’ because she runs a ‘Chili Zoo’ at her home, was an altogether different type of chilly as she and the group battled minus 25 degree temperatures on the final stretch.
Following the mountainous task she said: “So many thanks are due to our guides and porters who took care of us all the way up and all the way down.
“I met some wonderful people and heard some fantastic stories as well as learning a lot about myself.
“I reached my target of £2,600 for the Worcestershire Animal Rescue Shelter so a huge thanks to everyone who donated.”
