A MAN who six years ago successfully walked the 80 miles-plus of the Dales Way in one go is set to repeat the same feat - but this time on the driveway of his parents home in Ben Rhydding.

Former Ilkley Grammar School student Adam Bennett was just 22 when he walked from the edge of Windermere to Ilkley in around 33 hours raising almost £500 for the charity Y Care International. He raised money for the international relief and development agency of the YMCA as he later spent time volunteering in Guatemala as part of his International Citizen Service. Guatemala is a Central American country where Mayan communities were persecuted during a brutal 36-year civil war. Although the war ended in 1996 almost half of all Guatemalans still live in poverty.

During his placement in the town of San Cristóbal Adam made many friends and has stayed in touch with several of his Guatemalan teammates. One of them recently contacted him to say many families they worked with are really struggling in the current coronavirus crisis.

Adam, now 27, said: “Many people have been left without access to food and basic supplies because under lockdown conditions the government has shut down all public transport, markets and there is no way for these people to have an income when they were already living hand to mouth. My friends in San Cristóbal, along with others, have been trying to organise to get food to over 100 of these families but have not been able to raise the funds required to get the supplies to those who need them. Apparently, the situation is getting worse by the day.”

The desperate need of these families has inspired Adam to repeat his fundraising walk.

“Although walking the Dales Way itself would be much more scenic, it wouldn’t be responsible at present and so I have decided to walk it in lockdown conditions in solidarity with the people in Guatemala,” said Adam. “I am planning to set off on Saturday afternoon and hopefully complete it by Sunday night in around 30 hours of walking.”

He added: “I expect this attempt to be just as physically tiring and more mentally challenging.

“Even if any of readers sponsored me with the price of a cup of coffee, it would still make a huge difference in terms of getting food for people.”

Sponsor Adam online: https://www.gofundme.com/f/dales-way-in-a-drive