It’s been a while since I set myself a tough physical challenge so on 11th March I will be heading to the Himalayan slopes of Nepal in an attempt to reach one level up from Everest base camp.

Mt Everest, the highest peak in the world at 8,848 metres is one of the greatest trekking destinations in the world. Known locally as Sagarmatha, the mountain has long been revered as the home of the gods.

For 13 days I will be following remote mountain paths, crossing glaciers, traversing valleys and climbing high passes to ascend to the foot of Mount Everest at a height of 5,545 metres or 18,100 feet above sea level.

The scenery looks great but the accommodation and food suck. Night time temperatures fall to around minus 20 degrees and there’s a fairly high risk of altitude sickness. Sounds fun huh?

So why am I doing this? Well, aside from a personal ambition (it’s on my bucket list along with the rest of the teams) all money raised wil be in support of the Warwickshire and Northamptonshire Air Ambulance. The team is made up of Andy Williamson Cheif Executive of the WNAA, Linda Williamson his wife, Louise Ellington Barclaycard Community Manager and Bhavisha Patel.

All money pledged in support of the teams challenge will go directly to the Air Ambulance which operates a vital emergency medical service providing lifesaving treatment and medication at the scene of a serious accident and en-route to hospital.

The WNAA is a registered charity and relies totally on donations and sponsorship. The average cost per mission is around £850 and the annual running cost of the service is over £1.4 million.

If you want to help the Air Ambulance service save lives please sponsor one of the links below

www.justgiving.com/louiseellington

www.justgiving.com/andyveverest

www.justgiving.com/lindaveverest