A 10 YEAR old who lives near to the River Thames, has decided, with his dad, to walk the entire length of the waterway.
Ellis and his father, Matt, will take around 17 days to follow the river, from its source in a meadow near the village of Kemble in the Cotswolds, Gloucestershire, to the Thames Barrier near Woolwich, London.
The pair are walking in memory of Ellis’s grandmother, Barbara Sutherland, who died three years ago from pancreatic cancer, and hope to raise £50,000 for Cancer Research UK.
Ellis also hopes to be the youngest known person ever to walk the entire 185-mile Thames Path in one continuous challenge.
Wokingham Today caught up with Matt a day or so before the pair set off.
“We’ve walked together before,” he said.
“We’ve been rambling in Yorkshire, and we did some hiking up glaciers fairly recently in Iceland, which was exciting, but nothing on this scale.”
Matt wants this walk to be a real father-and-son adventure.
“We’ll be carrying much of what we need,” he said, “camping beside the river on a number of nights and using the journey as an opportunity for Ellis to learn everything from navigation and map reading to camping, fishing and looking after himself during a long-distance expedition.”
The pair will be mostly camping, but with proper beds to sleep on every few days.
“People have been really generous,” said Matt.
“Fuller’s pubs have provided some great places to stay along the way.”
Central London, at the end of the journey, has proved to be a little more challenging, however, as Matt has tried to find somewhere especially exotic to stay for Ellis’s last night along the Thames Path.
“I approached the Tower of London to see if we could camp on their glass walkway,” he said, “and the London Eye to ask if we could stay overnight in one of their pods.
“I even contacted the Globe Theatre to see if we could camp on their stage.
“Of course, they all said, ‘No, are you mad?’
Luxury South Bank Hotel Sea Containers has, however, offered to put father and son up in a five-star room.
“We’re really excited that we’re going to be able to enjoy a bit of luxury after all the nights of camping,” he added.
Matt is also trying to arrange a few memorable experiences and surprises along the route to keep his 10-year-old motivated through the long miles of walking.
“Virgin Ballooning are going to take us up in a hot air balloon ride, which will be amazing,” he said.
“Ellis is super excited about this trip, if a little apprehensive about how his legs will cope.
“It’s a long trek, about 12 or 13 miles a day, but I’ll be carrying most of the weight, so he should be unencumbered.
“We’ll see how he goes.”
The father and son, from Hampton, step out on their journey at the source of the Thames on Wednesday, August 19, and expect to arrive at the Thames Barrier by September 4.
They will pass through Sonning, on Friday, August 28.
They have already raised more than £5,000, but are grateful for any further donations to Cancer UK.
For information, and to support the pair’s challenge, people should visit: sourcetoseachallenge.co.uk
