Walking the Southwest Coastal Path - Chris Dowse January 10 @ 18.30

Walking the Southwest Coastal Path -  Chris Dowse  January 10 @ 18.30

SOUTH WEST COAST PATH

Deciding to set out on a 630-mile walk to raise money for charity is not something to be undertaken lightly.  But when Rotarian Chris Dowse from the Crieff Club visited local Rotary Clubs in May of this year, he explained that this was his intention.  Having survived prostrate cancer, he was motivated to raise money to help increase awareness of this disease, and also to fund much needed research.  Alongside this, he wanted to make a contribution to the Rotary campaign to end polio throughout the world, a campaign for which Rotary worldwide has committed to raising $150 million in the period up to 2020.  He decided to split the money raised equally between these two charities.

 Chris returned to the Club on Thursday to report progress on his walk of the South West Coastal Path which he had completed on 17 October, having started on 20 August, a total of 58 days.

It goes without saying that the South West Path is a major challenge. It starts in Minehead on the Somerset coast, winds its way south past Barnstable, Bude and Newquay, passing Land’s End before continuing along the Cornish and Devon coastlines reaching its end at Poole Harbour in Dorset.  Along the way, Chris had to climb a total of over 115,000 feet - about four times the height of Everest. 

With his wife as his back-up team, Chris’s plan was to average 12 miles a day, with one day’s rest each week.  His longest stretch was 18 miles that included an ascent of 4,000 feet.  Wanting to create as much public awareness as possible about the purpose of his walk, Chris used helium filled balloons tied to his walking poles to create interest. This proved enormously successful: he was regularly stopped to explain what this was all about.  He was greatly moved by the generosity of those he met on the way, which added to the total already raised.  He also highlighted that of those he met approaching 80% had been touched in one way or another by prostrate cancer.

Chris was full of enthusiasm for the Path with its dramatic scenery and the evidence of a rich geology, together with a great deal of history. Particularly evident in Cornwall was its heritage as a major mining industry.  More recent history was also to be seen at Slapton Sands where there were memorials to those lost in the rehearsals for D-Day.

When he reached the end of the Path on his 70th birthday, Chris said he was neither elated or depressed: he was satisfied with a task completed, a journey which in many ways he did not want to end.  However, he was delighted to have raised £13,635 – a sum that continues to grow by donations to the Prostrate Cancer and End Polio web-sites.  In recognition of his achievement, Chris was awarded a Paul Harris Fellowship, the highest accolade for a Rotarian.

Speaker’s Host, Iain Smith, spoke of Chris’s outstanding achievement and thanked him for a memorable and uplifting address.