So, it all began at a dinner party I didn’t go to. I was sick in bed, I was feeling awful and didn’t think I’d be much company. Shona headed off enthusiastically to BW’s anyway and in the course of a fantastic night, she got talking to Johnny Grehan. Johnny had been showing an uncharacteristic reluctance to indulge in the fine wines in great supply at the table, so she quizzed him about that. He announced he was in training.
‘Training for what?’ Shona asked.
‘A charity walk up Kilimanjaro!’ was the answer.
That was pretty much the start of it. Shona didn’t quite offer me up there and then, but she expressed interest on my behalf. I’m a reasonably frequent hill walker and I didn’t need too much encouragement, so I subsequently called Johnny and discovered that a group of about twenty walkers were embarking on a charity trek up Kilimanjaro in the coming September. Money was being raised for Self Help Africa, Down Syndrome Ireland (Carmona Services) and the Tuesday Trust.
Tags: beginnings
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Hugh
Love your musings on our climb – you have a great way with words. I concur with so many of the sentiments you express. I was aware of, but chose to ignore those people being guided back down the mountain but if I had seen Umbrella Lady it just might have speeded up the thawing out of my frozen fingers!! During some trying times in the chilly dark I looked up like you and wondered where the light of head torches ended and the stars began. At times I wondered at the mountains enormity yet looking at its size in the backdrop to our group photo at Millenium Camp it looks a doddle!
Claire
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