Kelly raised an amazing $3600 by completing the Great North Walk – 250kms from Sydney to Newcastle. We think Kelly is amazing for completing this mammoth walk to raise money for DEBRA, and to raise awareness of EB in the community. Thank you Kelly!
Here is a summary, written by Kelly, about her Great North Walk experience;
“The walk was a lot more challenging than I thought and took me through many different environments from salt marshes to mountain ridges.
Day 1: I had some close encounters with lizards and an echidna that was sniffing around my feet. Saw some beautiful scenery around Lane Cove River.
Day 2: I got pretty wet and found out what leeches look like! Visited Fishponds, a magical place where the sandstone is eroded out in circular patterns by small waterfalls.
Day 3: Very challenging, with a lot of up and down hill sections, but some rewarding views of Jerusalem Bay and the Hawkesbury River around Brooklyn.
Day 4: Walked through dense bushland where huge sandstone blocks were overgrown with moss and vines, ending at Girrakool with a cascading waterfall and aboriginal engravings.
Day 5: Into Yarramalong Valley through horse (snake and tick!) country past sheer sandstone cliffs above and drops below.
Day 6: I went from the valley to the Watagan Mountains with great views out towards Congewai and the lower Hunter Valley.
Day 7: Continued along the Myall Ranges and onto the Sugarloaf Ranges with more spectacular views! Rob Raymond from Earth Data, the company I work for, joined me on this day and experienced the joys of leeches but agreed the scenery was worth it.
Day 8: I had a lot of company for this, the last day. Starting at Teralba the walk took us past the peaceful Lake Macquarie and out to Glenrock Lagoon where torrential rain hit! The beach views made it all worth it and we didn't even have to get in the water to cool off! We all relaxed with a few drinks after reaching the end of The Great North Walk.
Kelly's thank you's!!
I'd like to thank Conor Byrne, Matthew Crotty, Mark Spencer, Belinda Sondhu, John Howard, Winona and Alannah Wilson for walking (and singing The Great North Walk song!) with me on this final day, and my mother Jenney Dixon who provided vehicle support when needed. You all kept me going! Special thanks to my partner Daniel Prasad who also provided vehicle support and foot rubs!
I'd also like to thank everyone who donated by cash and through the everydayhero.com website, and Earth Data Pty Ltd for generously matching all donations made by Earth Data employees bringing the grand total to $3600! What a fabulous outcome.
It's been a rewarding experience in many ways; improving my fitness, testing my determination, raising awareness of EB and funds for all those living with EB. I'm hoping I can make it an annual thing, with a fun run open to the public for the last 15kms or so of the walk.”
Kelly Dixon
Parts of Kelly’s walk are available to view at http://www.everytrail.com/profile.php?user_id=403536
