Charity climb set for Everest Base Camp
A Carrigtwohill woman will embark on a charity climb to Everest Base Camp next week when she will brave ice, snow, cracks and scree all in the name of a good cause.
Helen Baverstock, 63, a former community mental health nurse, will be heading off to Kathmandu in Nepal next Wednesday 11 October with 10 others from Midleton Hillwalking Club.
From there, she will take a flight to Lukla, where she will start the eight day arduous journey on Saturday 14 October.
Helen will attempt to scale Mount Everest Base Camp in aid of three charities she holds close to her heart: Adolescent Counselling in Carrigtwohill, and CarrigAware and Carrigtwohill Meals on Wheels.
The trek preparation began in earnest earlier this year, with the group scaling mountains across the Munster region. “We try to climb a mountain every week if we can, but the weather hasn’t been very kind to us. The terrain will be very different over there, and it’s very well worn as there are so many tourist hikers,” she said.
However, with Carrauntoohil just 1,038 metres (3,407 feet) in height, climbing mountains in Ireland is a very different prospect than Everest. Helen says that the main issue she could face is altitude sickness. "We will ascend to 5,550 metres in total, which is 18,000 feet and we will be walking roughly seven hours a day.”
Helen is no stranger to high altitudes, having successfully conquered the Annapurna Circuit in Nepal back in 2019. “It took us to a very similar height to base camp,” she explains.
“I feel because I’ve dealt with altitude before that I’m hoping that I’ll be ok this time, but people have reminded me that I’m a bit older now! Fingers crossed that I’ll be ok with it, because that is the biggest worry,” she added.
Having set up a GoFundMe page, Helen says she is delighted with the money raised and the response from the local community.
“I’m very happy, people have been so generous. I suppose people are pleased that the money will stay in the community too,” she said.
“I’m volunteering with CarrigAware who are very prominent in the community here at promoting wellbeing. I also volunteer with Meals on Wheels and am giving them a contribution. Adolescent Counselling is also an important part of people’s lives and that was to the forefront of my mind.”
Having been a mental health nurse, she says she is familiar with how people suffer so much from mental health issues, and the €3,000 already raised will go straight to her chosen charities. If you'd like to donate, go to www.gofundme.com/f/everest-base-camp-for-charity.