Spanning 127 miles, the Leeds to Liverpool Canal is the longest canal in North England.
From the beautiful banks of the river Mersey in Liverpool to the hustle and bustle of Leeds City Centre, it passes through 91 locks and has a summit level of 487 feet. The canal is home to some of the UK’s famous waterside attractions including the Bingley Five Rise Locks and the Double Arched Bridge in East Marton.
You’re probably wondering why we’re giving you a geography lesson, well for our 2019 charity challenge, we’re going to walk it! In relay fashion you’ll see the Optimum Medical team cover the 12 stages of the 127-mile journey over the course of two days.
Charity challenge stages:
- Stage 1: Liverpool to Bootle
- Stage 2: Aintree to Downholland
- Stage 3: Downholland to Halsall
- Stage 4: Halsall to Parbold
- Stage 5: Parbold to Wigan top lock
- Stage 6: Wigan to Blackburn
- Stage 7: Blackburn to Clayton-le-Moors
- Stage 8: Accrington, Burnley and Nelson
- Stage 9: Nelson to East Marton
- Stage 10: East Marton to Skipton
- Stage 11: Skipton to Saltaire
- Stage 12: Saltaire to Leeds
At Optimum Medical we’re not shy of a challenge in the name of charity, having previously completed the Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge in 2015, a grueling 25 mile hike up the three highest mountains in the county, in one day! All in aid of the amazing charities, Candlelighters and the Leeds Children’s Hospital Appeal. We raised a huge £1689.16 over the course of the year and are looking to smash that target again in 2019!
Beyond the blisters, the fundraising challenges throughout the year were all worth it to receive the following message from Brian Curran, the Corporate Fundraiser at Candlelighters:
“You have helped us support children and families who are facing their own challenges of a childhood cancer diagnosis. As you can appreciate, this is a life-changing challenge and your support has had such a positive effect on so many people.
“Your support has enabled us to help these children and their families. Without you, we wouldn’t be able to make life a little bit easier.”
Watch this space for further updates on how our training is going and who we’ve chosen to support as our charity of the year for our 2019 challenge!
