Machu Picchu conquered
Regular readers of ‘Open Door’ will be relieved to learn of the safe return of our two complementary therapists from their mega-adventure in Peru in May. Cherry Mackie and Lynda Hannam undertook a tough trek to Machu Picchu to raise more than £5,000 for the LJMC.
As they landed in Cusco, Cherry and Lynda were disconcerted to see a sign advertising free oxygen.
Despite all their training and preparations, they knew that acclimatising to the altitude was going to be one of the toughest parts of the challenge.
Fortunately, their itinerary was well planned and they had 24 hours in the town to get used to the thinner air before heading off on their trek.
The superlatives and adjectives they have used since their return have certainly inspired us all and we’ve been poring over the Charity Challenge brochure with envy.
Amazing, stunning, awe-inspiring, beautiful, breathtaking, outstanding, trip of a lifetime are just some of the ways in which they have talked about their experience.
Their trip didn’t follow the usual tourist route along the Inca Trail. Instead, they walked through the quiet, peaceful mountains, greeted by local people at every village and entertained by the children.
The group of 16 trekkers returned the hospitality with a thoroughly English rendition of ’10 Green Bottles’ which has possibly set back Anglo-Peruvian relations by a few years!
Nothing prepared the intrepid duo for their first sight of Machu Picchu itself. At the end of several days of hard walking, the Lost City of the Incas took their breath away.
Lynda was celebrating her birthday that day. “What an incredible birthday present,” she told us.
After more than a year of planning and training, the two therapists were not disappointed in their trip.
They are particularly thrilled to have received such magnificent support from colleagues, friends, family and patients and thank everyone for helping them raise so much money for the LJMC — £5,217 at the last count!
Last updated: 13 April, 2012
If you are interested in taking on a similar challenge, visit
for ideas and inspiration.
Charity Challenge organised the well publicised climb to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro by ten celebrities in aid of Comic Relief earlier this year.
This inspired David Stern and Clive Newman to sign up for this trip in February 2010.
This article first appeared in the Summer 2009 issue of the LJMC newsletter, Open Door.