The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Adventurers share ups and downs of challenge
Team tell tales of fundraising mountain trek in new book to support foundation
The ups and downs of an epic mountain challenge for charity have been immortalised in a new book raising money for The ARCHIE Foundation.
In 2015 a group of medical staff from Ninewells Hospital in Dundee and friends undertook The Archie Mountain Challenge to conquer all 130 Scottish mountains stretching above 1,000 metres in just 16 days.
The challenge raised £33,000 for The ARCHIE Foundation, the official charity of Tayside Children’s Hospital at Ninewells.
Led by consultant anaesthetist and outdoor enthusiast Dr Paul Fettes, the group of 57 fearless fundraisers completed a relay over and between every peak.
They did this on foot, on bikes and, in some cases, by kayak, carrying a cuddly rabbit baton every step of the way.
They covered over 1,700km (1,050 miles) – the equivalent of the distance from Edinburgh to Madrid, and ascended more that 85,000 metres, roughly 10 times the height of Everest.
The book tells the story of this epic outdoor adventure and details the individual journeys of each of the runners in their own words.
It features beautiful images of Scotland’s stunning scenery as well as maps of the route and social media posts from the challenge.
Readers will receive an A3 map of all the Archies with their copy, so they can “bag” them too, albeit at their own pace.
Dr Fettes said: “This book explains why, and tells the story of our amazing journey. It should appeal to anyone with a love of the outdoors, or a spirit of adventure. I’m hoping we will raise a lot more money with this book.”
The Archies is officially launched on Thursday at Dundee University’s Dalhousie Building at 7pm.
Tickets are free, available from www. eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-archies-booklaunch-tickets-36998861591
The book can be bought from www. archie.org and bookshops for £19.99.
It should appeal to anyone with a love of the outdoors