Three friends took on “a bajillion midges”, a fierce thunderstorm and walked the socks off their feet to raise more than £16,000 for charity.
Nina Young, 20, spent 34 days trekking Scotland’s North Coast 500 to fundraise for the Teapot Trust.
The mental health charity – which provides support to children and families coping with chronic conditions by delivering art therapy – was founded by Ms Young’s parents in 2010 following the death of her eight-year-old sister, Verity, who had been treated in hospital for lupus and then cancer.
The Edinburgh Medical School student, from East Lothian, set off on her adventure from Inverness Castle at the end of July.
She was joined on the first nine days by fellow medical student Lunjika Nyirenda, 19. Friend Jessie Brown, 21, then joined on day ten.
The 500-mile fundraiser – which was inspired by The Proclaimers’ famous smash hit – involved wild camping and an average daily walk of around 15 miles along blustery and steep coastal paths.
Ms Brown said: “The journey around Cape Wrath was a particularly memorable few days due to its remoteness, but I won’t ever forget the cold, rainy, midge-y night we spent trembling in a gully as lightning and thunder crashed and boomed all around us.
“We’d crawled out of our tent as the last thing we read on our phone before losing signal was that tent poles can act as conductors for lightning. We laugh at it now, but I’m not sure if I was laughing at the time.”
The adventure came to an end in Applecross on Sunday.
Ms Young said: “I couldn’t be more chuffed that the walk’s come to fruition.
“Even after being attacked by a bajillion midges and having our socks walked off our feet, I’ve enjoyed every minute and been blown away by the kindness of the people who’ve donated.
“Jika and Jessie have been amazing, I couldn’t have done it without them.”
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