Hundreds aim to walk 40 miles through Lake District in event to raise £500,000 for charity

Hundreds of people will take on a 40-mile walk challenge on one day through the English Lake District in 2025 to try to raise more than £500,000 for charity.

The Keswick to Barrow Walk smashed all records by raising £503,000 for 210 charities in 2024 – and has set its sights on going one step further in 2025.

In total 2,866 walkers took part in the Keswick to Barrow Walk (K2B) and Coniston to Barrow Walk (C2B) on May 11, 2024 – the 57^th year since the annual K2B first started.

K2B organisers recently announced the incredible sum raised from its 2024 event – and immediately set their sights on breaking the record in 2025.

They are appealing for more walkers – individuals, businesses and organisations – from more parts of the UK and beyond to take part in the 2025 event on May 10.

Registration opens on January 2 for teams of between four and 12 walkers and is open to anyone who wants to take on the walking challenge.

Roy Barnes, a member of the Keswick to Barrow Walk committee, said: “We want to appeal to walkers from all over the country and beyond to take part in what is an amazing event.

“It’s a challenge to walk 40 miles in one day, but the camaraderie among everyone who takes part, and all the supporters, makes it a truly memorable experience.

“The feeling of reaching the finish line is an experience and an achievement which will stay with you for the rest of your life. Knowing you have raised money for brilliant charities along the way and really helped improve people’s lives is the icing on the cake.

“We have some walkers who love it so much they have taken part more than 20 times. They get the bug! If you haven’t taken part yet, make sure you make a resolution that 2025 is the year that you do. You won’t regret it.”

Roy added that the amazing amount of money raised by the 2024 event was a fabulous surprise to everyone involved.

He said: “For several years we have been just under the £400,000 threshold for the amount raised by K2B and C2B walkers. We thought we would hit £400,000 in 2020 but unfortunately Covid had other ideas. 

“Since then we’ve just missed that £400,000 goal until this year. This year, not only did we hit this milestone, we exceeded it by over £100,000 by raising an incredible £503,000. This money makes a real difference to more than 200 amazing charities and good causes who support people across our communities.

“Now we want to top that in 2025!”

Visit https://keswick2barrow.co.uk/ for further details and follow Keswick to Barrow Walk on LinkedIn, Facebook, X and Instagram for updates.