Hall & Woodhouse hike to aid Dorset Air Ambulance

Six Hall & Woodhouse (H&W) team members joined just under 3,000 adventurers, to walk 24km from Poole to Corfe Castle. A group of four more team members dug deeper to go on to Weymouth, completing the 58km hike in 30-degree heat. The group set off from Poole at 10am and walked continuously for 18 hours, through the night, before they arrived in Weymouth at 4am, having conquered the challenge.

The team raised a total of £6,000 in sponsorship for Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance, which is H&W’s charity partner for 2018-20. This sum will be added to the company-wide donation, which aims to raise £250,000 over the two years for the charity. As well as fundraising for this cause, the Hall & Woodhouse Community Chest donates £50,000 a year to local charities and community organisations.

David Hoare, Development Director at Hall & Woodhouse, said, “It was tough, especially in the heat and then in the dark, but we are proud to have raised such a significant amount for a worthy cause. We are very thankful for all who donated and supported us throughout the challenge. The walk really brought the team together and the feeling of accomplishment we all shared at the end was fantastic. One air ambulance takes off in Britain every 10 minutes during daylight hours, so the fact we have helped a cause doing such amazing things kept us going.

“The Jurassic Coast Challenge certainly lived up to its name, the climb and then descent into Lulworth Cove was extremely difficult. I could only do the climb 20 steps at a time before resting and the descent was only achieved by clinging onto wire fencing to stop us falling. The last 14km into Weymouth was hot, dark, painful and seemed endless.

“I had managed to avoid the trap of over-training; on the morning of the challenge I Googled ‘how to do an extreme hike without any preparation’. I was glad I made vital last-minute preparations, such as investing in a pair of blister- resistant socks, a ton of Compeed plasters and a vast vat of Vaseline.”

Hall & Woodhouse is dedicated to supporting the Dorset community and its causes, having invested more than £30million into the county over the past five years, on top of their regular and extensive charity donations.