Cambridge coast walker Chris Howard to arrive in Portsmouth as part of 11,000 mile trek for Children in Need

After setting off from Heacham South Beach in Norfolk on July 29, Cambridge builder Chris Howard, 37, is due to pass the 1,000-mile mark when he arrives in the city.

After camping overnight in Chidham, Chris will trek the 20 miles to Portsmouth. The married dad of three has taken a year out from his job as a builder to complete the mammoth walk. He was inspired to do the trek after reading about the impact lockdown was having on disadvantaged children.

Chris said: ‘You had a lot of time to think during lockdown and I wanted to do something to help. Once I had come up with the idea I just thought I needed to get on with it. I’m hoping to raise over £10,000 and so for I’ve raised £3,600.’

With a ‘limited emergency budget’, Chris is wild camping as well as foraging for his own food and relying on the generosity of others.

He said: ‘I’ve been really surprised by peoples’ generosity. There has been 15 out of my 40 nights where someone has kindly given me a room. Going along the coast there’s quite a lot of opportunity to gather mussels, crabs and berries to eat.’

Having rowed the Atlantic, Chris feels the biggest challenge will be more mental than physical.

‘I’ve had a few blisters but the main thing is missing my family. The further I walk the more difficult it becomes to see them. I’m due to see them at the end of September and then it will probably be Christmas before I see them again. There’s also the uncertainty of not knowing where I’m going to be staying each night,’ said Chris.

After leaving Portsmouth, Chris will trek the Dorset, Devon and Cornish coasts before heading north to Wales. He hopes to be in Scotland by early spring and to have returned to Norfolk by July next year.

You can donate to Chris’s cause by going to his the coast walker website.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

Thank you for reading this story. The dramatic events of 2020 are having a major impact on our advertisers and thus our revenues.

The News is more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription to support our journalism. You can subscribe here for unlimited access to Portsmouth news and information online.

Every subscription helps us continue providing trusted, local journalism and campaign on your behalf for our city.