A hardy hiker has raised thousands of pounds for charity after circumnavigating the Isle of Wight on foot.

Liz Renton, from Maldon, took on the Isle of Wight Ultra Challenge where she was tasked with walking around the 106km coastline in the space of just two days.

It took Liz just 30 hours to cover the whole distance, raising almost £2,700 for the Chicks charity.

Liz said: “The first 52km to the Cowes dinner stop were actually enjoyable but the second half was more mind over matter.

“Clocking off each kilometre through the night with a whoop and a cheer got us to breakfast as dawn broke over Culver Down.

“The last 24km along the esplanades at Sandown, Shanklin and Ventnor was a slog, but the sense of achievement was amazing.”

Liz has been a dedicated supporter of the charity for more than 20 years.

She first heard about Chicks after reading a magazine article about the group.

The cause provides free, week-long breaks for hundreds of children and young people living in poor conditions across the UK.

In the last five years, 123 Essex children have benefitted from the charity’s support, of which around half were living in poverty.

More than half of the children were also responsible for caring for an older or younger family member and around 25 children had witnessed or suffered from domestic abuse.

Liz has attended six breaks with the charity since starting as a volunteer in 2015.

She said: “I know how hard it is for smaller charities like Chicks to raise the funds necessary to keep operating and I have seen first hand what wonderful work they do.

“So when I was looking for another new challenge I decided to combine a personal, physical challenge with an opportunity to raise money for chicks through sponsorship.”

n To find out more about the work of Chicks and to support the charity, click

here

.