Elliott Dodds recently completed the Wainwright’s Coast to Coast Expedition for his Duke of Edinburgh award. The JTYAF were pleased to be able to help with the equipment for his adventure.

Here's Elliott's report from his travels:

"Completing the Wainwright’s Coast to Coast walk will stay with me for many years as a testing but rewarding experience. Physical preparation seemed to make circumstances easier to deal with. However, it was the mental aspect which was most challenging; facing wet weather for the majority of days, getting out into heavy rain accompanied with strong winds and fog on some occasions was demoralising.

Despite dark, muggy weather up in the Lake District and The North York Moors, views along the way were spectacular, especially scanning the hill tops and scenery after climbing hundreds of metres; trekking alongside multiple lakes, reservoirs, rivers and streams gave a tranquil set and atmosphere.

Two weeks unaided was truly challenging and called upon great team spirit and high moral, pulling together as a unit when we needed one another. Being able to support each other at times in need was vitally important after some gruelling, long days, for instance one day in the Lake District, where we found ourselves out walking for an agonising twelve or so hours in mixed conditions throughout the day. Staying together as a team whilst walking became difficult once fatigue and injuries began to kick in, with some being capable of walking at a faster pace, resulting in a steady pace having to be enforced as a happy medium.

Communication was crucial when it came to mapping, ensuring we were heading in the correct direction, going through check points on time and maintaining an adequate pace. Team work was also required for pitching up tents and cooking in the evening, sharing out duties such as water replenishment or washing up duty, mixing up duties on different occasions.

Over the course of the two week expedition, I learned that everyone is different mentally and physically, approaching objectives in various ways and coping with things another way. These differences made me realise that sacrifices need to be made for the welfare of the team and maintain moral. It also emphasised how much we relied upon each other to stay focussed and succeed.

I look forward to completing similar or more exuberating challenges in the future to further expand on developing my array of skills and continue to test myself in different environments."

Great report Elliott and some fabulous photos to match!