Cumbernauld man's charity trek is now underway

Alex Slipchuk, who works as a technical consultant for Rentokil Pest Control, has set himself a target of £10,000 and will be supported by Rentokil Initial with the company’s match funding scheme.

He will be supporting two charities with his efforts – Scottish Mountain Rescue and Malaria No More.

Alex will be wild camping each night and making use of nearby rivers and lochs to clean and cook.

The mountaineer will share daily videos relating to sustainability, ethical outdoor play, midge and tick concerns, and cooking on his Youtube channel thezippyslipchukshow.

The Dad-of-two explained why he chose the charities: “They are very close to my heart for very different, yet related reasons.

"Malaria takes the life of a child under five, every two minutes, and currently more than 700 children across the world die every day from this preventable and treatable disease.

“Meanwhile, Scottish Mountain Rescue provides a valuable volunteer service that many of us may take for granted, especially now hill traffic has increased.

“One day it may be you in need of rescue, so if you use the Scottish hills and outdoor space for pleasure, please donate and show your thanks.”

Alex has set up an online donation page through Virgin Money which can be accessed via https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-display/showROFundraiserPage?userUrl=alexslipchuk&pageUrl=1

Post-event, Alex plans to donate his trusty Hilleberg tent (which will be covered by the original warranty and made Coronavirus-safe) to one lucky non-commercial donor, whose name will be drawn from a hat two weeks after the trip.

The solo tent retails at £815 and is highly regarded by lovers of the great outdoors.

The Great Outdoors Challenge is a historic event which began in 1980.

Every year, 250-300 committed hikers take part and walk from Oban to Montrose – from Scotland’s west coast to east coast.

The 200-mile trek includes 8,000 feet of total elevation.