An Edinburgh-based walking enthusiast is ready to pack up his things, dust off his walking boots and head across the Atlantic to raise money for a good cause.
Edinburgh College Computing lecturer Freddie Johnson will head out to Canada on a trekking adventure in aid of Marie Curie Cancer – a charity very close to his heart.
Freddie, who has worked for the College for the past 29 years, has hosted a number of fundraising activities over the past year leading up to this final challenge which will see him hike 70 miles over 6 days across the Canadian Rocky Mountains.
Freddie will set off on Saturday 22 June alongside a group of 22 others from all over the UK and return on Sunday 30 June. He recently attended a meeting in London to be briefed on the challenge and got the chance to meet the other participants.
Freddie said: “I am fundraising for Marie Curie as it’s a charity very close to my heart. My mum needed their help before she passed away with cancer at the age of 66 and the support they provided her with was fantastic, so I would really like to give something back.
“I have done a few fundraisers before and around 20 years ago I also cycled across Cuba for the National Deaf Children’s Society which was an incredible adventure. The trek across the Canadian Rocky Mountains at the end of June is a big undertaking and it will definitely be the most challenging yet, but I’m looking forward to it.
“Preparations for the challenge have been going very well, I live in the city centre of Edinburgh and have been walking to work at the College’s Sighthill Campus nearly every day over the past couple of months. I have also spent time climbing a number of munros across Scotland including Ben Ledi, Ben Vrackie and The Cobbler.
“I really enjoy being outdoors, so I thought this would be a great opportunity to be able to raise some money for charity. So far I have surpassed my target of £3,800, raising a total of £4,494. I’d like to thank the people who have already donated and I’m looking forward to seeing how much I can raise by the time the challenge has been completed.”
Click here if you would like to donate or find out more about Freddie’s journey.