Walk This Way for Demelza Hospice

Group size

You will be joining a group of between 50 and 100 likeminded challenge participants.

Booking with Confidence

We understand that there may be a little uncertainty around booking in the current climate so we have created a 'Booking With Confidence' policy to help you book your next Charity Challenge with absolute confidence.

Book with the knowledge that:

• We are putting significant measures in place to make your challenge Covid Safe
• We have flexible payment options
• We have International Passenger Protection financial cover for your peace of mind*

We will offer you a number of options if we cannot operate your challenge due to Covid-19 :

• postpone your challenge to a later departure
• join any other challenge
• transfer your place to another person
• receive a refund of monies paid for the challenge

Keeping Safe post-Covid

This challenge is planned to run in September 2021 when we hope that we will live in a post Covid restricted world. Please rest assured that Charity Challenge will continue to monitor all of the latest advice from both the government and local authorities and will ensure that all of our safety systems are up to date. Our safety advice for our UK challenge’s running in the autumn of 2020 can be viewed here. This document will be amended as and when the advice changes

Emergencies

Your leadership team are trained to deal with emergency situations in remote areas and will be carrying a mobile phone and radios in case the emergency services need to be contacted. The event is not run as a race and you will never be encouraged to walk at a pace ‘beyond your ability’. There will always be a wide variety in people’s walking abilities which will be carefully managed by the leaders. This team will always keep the group together for maximum safety and set a sensible pace for all to achieve this challenge within the time allowed. If we find that you are unable to trek at all, then we will arrange for you to be collected and taken back to the hospice.

Accommodation

No accommodation is provided for this challenge.

Challenge timings

Please note that Final Details regarding the precise challenge timings will be sent to you one month prior to the event.

65km route

You will need to arrive at the registration point for 6am for a safety briefing and a 6.30am start.

We expect the challenge to take between 12-14 hours to complete, and we aim to have everyone finished by 8.30pm.

35km route

You will need to arrive at the registration point for 8am for a safety briefing and an 8.30am start.

We expect the challenge to take between 8-10 hours to complete, and we aim to have everyone finished by 6.30pm.

Please note that due to the nature of this challenge, changes may happen that delay the finish time so please make flexible travel plans.

Responsible Tourism

Charity Challenge believes that all of its challenges, whether in the UK or overseas, should have a positive impact on the communities we visit.

In the UK we would encourage all participants to consider booking an additional nights accommodation in the area they are visiting so that they can fully enjoy their challenge experience. Many of our challenges are set in beautiful areas of the UK so why not turn your challenge into a weekend away and go out for a celebration meal in a local pub or restaurant after you finish.

For more details about our responsible tourism policy then please click here.

Terrain

Despite its location in London, the difficulty of this trek should not be underestimated as it includes one long day of hiking, over varied terrain. The route is on good paths and roads, but it's the variation of terrain that makes this challenge a unique and fun experience.

Weather

This is a UK challenge so please come prepared for all types of weather! There is a very good chance that you may experience all 4 seasons in one day! Whilst we would encourage everyone to check the weather forecast before travelling, we would remind everyone to make sure you always carry with you a warm top and waterproofs during the challenge.

Getting to and from the challenge

Details regarding precise locations, parking and public transport will be provided in your Final Details document one month prior to the challenge.

65km Route Start Point

The 65km route starts at the Demelza Kent Hospice. For details about reaching the hospice please click here to go to the charity’s website. (https://www.demelza.org.uk/about-us/contact-us/find-us/demelza-kent)

35km Route Start Point

The 35km route will start at the promenade in Gravesend.

Getting Home from the Finish

The finish of the challenge is at the *Demelza Hospice South East London. The hospice is located in Eltham in south east London. Details of the location of the hospice can be found on the charity’s website here (https://www.demelza.org.uk/about-us/contact-us/find-us/demelza-sel)

No transfer back to the start point is provided by Charity Challenge.

Please note: Whilst we shall do all we can to stick to this finish time, please make sure you book flexible return tickets as delays can happen and we cannot guarantee a precise finishing time or be held responsible for any missed transport.

Please note, the start and finish locations are dependent on COVID-19 restrictions but will be in Sittingbourne and Eltham.

Why book with Charity Challenge?

• The very best walking leaders, who are fully qualified, highly experienced, knowledgeable and fun. They will do everything to help you complete the challenge and have a great time doing it.
• Fully supported walking challenge. Checkpoints, walking leaders and support vehicle.
• Uniquely designed route created specifically for Demelza Hospice Care for Children.

Toilets

There will be public toilets available throughout the challenge.

Insurance

We don’t offer insurance for our UK trips, as any medical emergencies would naturally be covered through the NHS. Therefore the main thing that you will not be covered for is cancellation. You can see our cancellation policy within our terms and conditions here. If you wish, you could look into your own policy that covers cancellation for travel within the UK.

Safety

Charity Challenge considers the safety of all of our participants and staff to be a top priority, and as such we have set up Challenge Safe, one of the most advanced and thorough safety management systems in the industry. Challenge Safe formalises our ethos when it comes to safety, and brings together the procedures and risk management strategies that we use to audit all aspects of our challenges, from vehicles to accommodation to the challenge activity itself. Your welfare is absolutely paramount!

Here are a couple of important points that you should be aware of:

•    Don’t underestimate the difficulty of an urban challenge. 65km or 35km is a tough and challenging distance.

•    Walking long distances means you could be walking for approximately 12-14 hours on the 65km route, and between 8-10 hours on the 35km route. You should ensure your training has been tailored towards this.

•    Despite this being an urban challenge, you should still make sure that you have all appropriate clothing and kit.

Training

The Walk This Way challenge is a long, sustained event of up to 12-14 hours for the 65km route and 8-10 hours for the 35km route and covering varied terrain. Therefore, it requires a good level of fitness. The ideal training for this challenge is, naturally, walking along similar terrain. However, if you do not have the luxury of living near the great outdoors, then the gym or walking in your local area are good places to start. Most training should be part of an ongoing lifestyle, but if this is not the case then you should begin training 2-3 months prior to the challenge and gradually build up. Remember to use the clothes, equipment and especially the shoes that you will be wearing on the challenge in order to get them worn in.

The more you exercise before the challenge, the more you will get out of it. Also see your Charity Challenge Fitness Training notes.

Clothing and equipment

Equipment of good quality and durability could make the difference between a fantastic challenge experience and an uncomfortable one. For this challenge, waterproof and well-worn in boots or walking shoes will be indispensable. The terrain is uneven and can be very rough, so it is vital that you use boots or walking shoes with good grip. Sports trainers are not suitable.

A full kit list for this challenge can be found on the website.

Once you book you will have access to kit discounts with our partners Outdoor Hire and Cotswold Outdoor.

What is the difference between the two routes?

This challenge has two different distances for you to choose between. A 35km route that starts in Gravesend and a longer 65km route that starts at the Demelza hospice just outside Sittingbourne. Both distances follow exactly the same route, the only difference is that the 35km route only uses the final 35km of the route. Both distances finish at the Demelza Hospice South East London (in Eltham).

At the time of booking you will be asked to choose which of the two distances you wish to enter.

How do we follow the route?

This is a route marked challenge event which means that you will be required to follow the route arrows that mark the route. It will be each persons responsibility to ensure that they pay attention to route finding at all time.

One month prior to the challenge each partiicpant will also be sent a GPX file of the route to use with applicable mapping software and apps.

On the event you will also be given the 'event safety phone number' which you should call if you have any problems during the day.

If you do become lost during the challenge then we would ask you to stop where you are and call the event phone number so that we can assist you. We advise everyone to call for assistance rather than trying to find your own way back to the route.

Detailed information about what to do should you have any problems on the challenge will be provided at the safety briefing on the morning of the event.

Food and drink

A packed lunch will be available to you during the day.

At each checkpoint (approx. every 2 hours) there will be water and checkpoint snacks available.

We would advise that everyone also bring some of their own favourite snacks to keep them going during the day.

Level of difficulty

The Walk This Way challenge 65km trek is graded as tough, and the 35km trek is graded as challenging. This is the perfect challenge for participants who are of an adventurous spirit and an open mind, who have taken part in other trekking challenges and now wish to test themselves over a greater distance. You can tell your supporters that on your Walk This Way challenge you will be:

• Covering either 35km or 65km. It’s entirely up to you!
• Taking on varied terrain, from footpaths to urban roads.
• Ascending over 500m across the whole route.