Setting out from the Mexican border on February 19th, I will be hiking the newly completed Arizona Trail all the way to Utah, 820 miles away. The Trail crosses hundreds of miles of desert, at least 5 mountain ranges and dips down through the Grand Canyon. On the way I will be camping out in the wilderness and will be totally self-sufficient for food and water. It could be a bit tough, although I am more likely to get stopped in my tracks by snow around the Grand Canyon than heat in the desert. My total experience of this sort of thing consists of 4 days on the South Days Way and a brief excursion along the Cornish Coastal Path. All being well I should be on a plane home on April 2nd after 40 days and nights in the wilderness - I know, I won't be the first person to do that!

I am financing all the costs of the challenge so every penny you donate will be passed on by the Diocese of Norwich, who have kindly offered to help with managing the money raised. It will then be split between two great causes:-

Edith Creasey is a lovely 3 year old girl from Holt. She was born 10 weeks early and suffered an extensive bleed to her brain resulting in quadraplegic cerebral palsy. Edith can't sit unaided or walk and has limited use of her right arm and poor head control. Otherwise she is a wonderfully  bright, intelligent and happy 3 year old with excellent speech and a great sense of humour.

There is no cure for Edith's condition but much can be done to Improve it and help her reach her full potential. Recently she has been benefiting from conductive therapy, a movement based approach which helps to build self esteem, develop physical stamina and learn daily life skills. A week's course costs £800 in London and is not NHS funded so money is badly needed to help Edith continue with the therapy. You can read more on the Just Giving page set up for Edith Creasey when her father, Sean cycled to London for her.

St Andrews in Thursford is a wonderful little church, mostly Victorian but built on medieval foundations. The stained glass is thought to be some of the best in the country. But the roof needs a huge overhaul and the electrics are so unsafe that we are not allowed to switch them on. About £100,000 will be needed to put it all right.

So far the village has set up the Friends of St Andrews and a grant from English Heritage will go some way to the total. Thursford residents, whether practicing Christians or not, are determined to save the building for future generations and have been busy with hog roasts, concerts and open gardens but much more needs to be done.

Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.  If you would prefer all your donation to go to just one cause, just let me know.

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.