Anne completes 1350-mile charity walk

nima chair Anne Kemp has completed her charity fundraising walk for Alzheimer’s Society.

Starting in mid-March 2025 (news), Anne walked for 101 days, covering a total distance of 1,350 miles (2,173km) from Land’s End to John O’Groats, and finished on 23 June.

The walk was in memory of her mother, Mary Amelia Marchington, who died almost a year ago (on 2 July 2024) after a prolonged struggle with advanced dementia. Anne sought to raise £20,000 for Alzheimer’s Society.

Anne wrote a regular blog throughout her marathon walk (read Anne’s LEJOG blog), and, upon reaching John O’Groats, she reflected on her mammoth achievement:

“… I have a deep sense of fulfilment and calm. And I am looking forward to returning home to my precious family and valued friends, and to my work routine. It’s a phase of endings and beginnings. No abrupt stop and start but a gentler moving on.

… But now to the highlights of the actual walk. The many and varied birds would have to be one – learning to recognise ospreys, razorbills, kittiwakes and black guillemots; spotting grey and common seals; the fantastic coastal scenery and the sheer, high cliffs. The kindness of strangers. The challenges: navigating overgrown, rough ground, fording streams and squelching through boggy ground; climbing over awkward barbed wire fences. The high winds.

… Returning home will lead me to new beginnings – settling back into the work routine; our own home routine and how we may want to tweak and adjust it; adjusting my diet, how to stay fit and healthy; how to get work-life balance right…..

… Enjoy your own challenges, however small and insignificant they may be to anyone else. That doesn’t matter. Thank you to all of you who have supported me on the way, and if you haven’t already, for the last time, can I ask you to consider donating to Alzheimer’s Society ….

Please support Anne’s fundraising via JustGiving.