A RESCUE team has thanked a fundraiser for raising vital charity money on the first leg of her endurance challenge.

Leanne Ritchie has raised £1,150 in aid of Wasdale Mountain Rescue as part of a wider charity effort.

Tackling the walk from Land’s End to John O’ Groats in stages, she began her endurance challenge in 2015 in memory of her father.

In 2019 she began the next leg of her journey, raising charity funds for Wasdale Mountain Rescue and Guide Dogs for the Blind. And she is planning to complete the remaining 235 miles in April and is continuing to collect donations.

Leanne said: “I love that part of the Lakes and I’ve done a lot of walking up there in the past.”

She added that she is enjoying the experience: “I don’t want to come home, it’s a little adventure.”

The donation to Wasdale Mountain Rescue is just a small proportion of the funds she has raised. The team’s spokesperson Julie Yates said: “She’s from Leicestershire originally, it’s great that someone who isn’t even from Cumbria can raise this money for the rescue team.”

Julie added that the team are thankful for all of the fundraising they have received over the years.She said: “The family of Chris Brown raised a lot of money for us and we’ve got Kacy Mason.”

Funds were raised by the Brown family to support Wasdale Mountain Rescue after Chris Brown tragically died on a hike up Scafell Pike in June 2019.

Wasdale Mountain Rescue Team were deployed when Mr Brown was reported missing.

Fundraising youngster Kacy Mason, aged 10 from Maryport is taking on the Wainwright Challenge in aid of the rescue team. Kacy’s Just Giving page has raised £894 so far of a targeted £2000 and she has 126 Wainwrights left to conquer.

The mountain rescue team is looking for more help with fundraising.

Julie added: “We need to raise £70,000 a year to keep it running. We also need another five to six volunteers, we’ve got ideas already but we need a couple of people to come along and provide support.”

Wasdale Mountain Rescue, which is a registered charity, was formed in 1968 and its headquarters are based near Gosforth.