Climbing Kilimanjaro has been on my bucket list for some time. At 5,895 metres it is both the highest mountain in Africa and the highest free-standing mountain in the world.

I also wanted to use the opportunity to raise funds for Cheka Sana Tanzania, a Tanzanian NGO working on the shores of Lake Victoria and one of Amos Trust’s On Her Terms partners.

Cheka supports children and young people living or working on the streets, using a therapeutic, solutions-focused approach which concentrates on children’s potential and strengths. I’d met and listened to workers from Cheka at a session at Amos Day in September 2018. 

I reached the summit of Kilimanjaro just before sunrise on 26 February 2019. It had taken us a week, starting in banana and coffee plantations at +30°C through rain forest, moorland and arctic desert to the summit and glaciers at -20°C. I learnt to walk very slowly, to cope with the effects of the extreme altitude.

It was a wonderful, if challenging experience and I raised just over £1,500 for Amos’ work with street children. There is still time to sponsor me; if you are interested, please visit my fundraising page.

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Find out more about Amos’ On Her Terms campaign and Cheka Sana Tanzania. And if you would like to tick something off your bucket list and raise money for Amos Trust, please contact Katie Hagley.