21 February 2020

Taking on 100 miles of the West Highland Way

Kyle Muir, Craig Sims, Shane Maher and Raymond Ionesi all work for R&W Civil Engineering on the M27 smart motorway project, near Southampton.

Starting on the 28th February 2020, they are going to be pushing themselves to the limit, and walking the West Highland Way. The trek starts just outside Glasgow and will finish at the top of Ben Nevis, the tallest mountain in the UK, and some 160km (100 miles) from the start.

Kyle comments:

The reason we’re taking on this adventure for Southampton Hospital Charity is that we’re raising money for the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Princess Anne Hospital.

I stayed in the unit for a few days with my son when he was born, and I can only imagine what it is like to stay for months on end for babies who need more help. The care provided by the staff was incredible, but with the money raised, more can be done to enhance the hospital experience for patients and their families.

Smart Motorway Project, Southampton
Camping in the Highlands, Southampton Hospitals Charity

We will be camping in the Highlands throughout the trek, and so will be carrying everything we need with us – tents, spare clothes, food and water. We also need to keep up a good pace of between 20-26 miles each day to ensure we don’t run out of food. This is a real possibility if we hit bad weather, especially as it can turn at any time.”

It will be a hard trek, especially as we travel along the Devil’s staircase which is a stretch of seven mountains that covers 38 miles.

I grew up in the Highlands, but the rest of the team are novices at these kinds of extreme conditions. I think hands down the hardest part will be the final climb up Ben Nevis. With temperatures potentially dropping down as low as -12’C, we have a lot to contend with.”

The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in Southampton provides specialist care to around 900 sick newborn and premature babies every year.

Last updated: 21/02/2020

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