Katie and Indy nearing the end of their epic 107 day Marine Miles walking challenge
Indy and Katie are two extraordinary conservationists who set themselves an epic challenge
Katie Monk and Indy Kiemel Greene are nearing the finish line on their remarkable mission to raise funds for HWDT. Katie and Indy have walked from Land’s End to John o' Groats, with a ‘wee’ detour via the Hebrides. They have raised an incredible £13,425 so far, but there’s still time to donate and help drive them through the last 24 hours!
Marine Miles kicked off on 10 May 2024, with Katie and Indy setting off from Land’s End on their epic challenge. Rather than taking the direct route from Land’s End to John o’ Groats, Katie and Indy made a detour via the Hebrides, walking some of the islands before their final push to the top of mainland Scotland. Starting in the south and making a beeline for the Pennines before heading over to the Isle of Bute, followed by the Isle of Mull, then off to Harris and Lewis. Katie and Indy then caught the ferry to Ullapool to complete the final stretch and are now on the approach to John o' Groats.
Katie and indy are due to arrive at john o’groats tomorrow, saturday 24 august!!
donate now to help drive them forward to the end of this arduous challenge and help them to absolutely smash their fundraising target.
Indy, 18, from Sherwood Forest Nottinghamshire and Katie, 20 from Edinburgh are both passionate about the environment and decided to undertake this epic 1300-mile journey to raise funds for HWDT.
“The remarkable challenge Katie and Indy set themselves is testament to their passion and determination.
Everyone at HWDT are in awe of what Katie and Indy have achieved this summer. The incredible effort that they have put in to this challenge; walking for 3 months and 15 days to raise awareness and funds for marine conservation is truly inspiring.
We are blown away with the incredible amount they have raised for HWDT. Thank you to everyone who has donated and driven these two wonderful people forward on this unbelievable journey. ”
Indy and Katie both have great connections and a heartfelt respect for the work and people at HWDT. Through Indy's work leading whale watching tours in the Hebrides, he has seen how the data gathered by the charity and by members of the public has created an extensive database and increased our knowledge of cetaceans in Scottish waters. This all aids in securing legislation to protect marine mammals and more recently, towards creating marine protected areas around Scotland's vast and diverse coastline.
WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO TAKE ON THIS CHALLENGE?
Katie: “I was inspired to plan Marine Miles and get outside and explore the UK after being stuck in front of a laptop at University all year. Being outside is so good for your mental health and I had missed being outside in nature everyday. “ Katie and Indy were aware of people cycling from Land’s End to John o' Groats, but were keen to take the slower approach and walk the distance.
WHAT’S BEEN YOUR FAVOURITE THING?
Indy: “One of my favourite things was seeing the country change; ‘waving goodbye’ to the white sands of Cornwall and ‘saying hello’ to the rockier shores and the change of the sea colour as we approached the Bristol Channel. It was amazing seeing the Peak District coming into view, experiencing it on the slow approach rather than whizzing into view if you were in a car.” Katie’s favourite has been the kindness of people - everywhere they’ve been people have been so incredibly kind. It’s restored their faith in humanity coming across the kindness of strangers.
FAVOURITE CAMP?
Indy’s has been the Seilebost on the Isle of Harris - an utterly stunning white sand beach. One of Katie’s favourites was on the road between Arisaig and Lochailort - which was gorgeous little place, surrounded by heather and really blue, clear water, and a lovely stony beach (stoney beaches are welcome, sand gets everywhere!). Katie had a swim and was convinced she’d heard a dolphin…next thing they spotted dolphins close by, swimming past the view from the tent.
WHAT’S BEEN THE MOST CHALLENGING ASPECT?
There were some really long days, particularly at the start of Marine Miles when Katie and Indy were walking along roads. There were some real slogs along long, tarmac roads where it was really boring, it took some real resilience to power through as they were exhausted. Indy says it’s always difficult on road surfaces, as opposed to a nice gravel track - your feet take a real pounding on tarmac. One day down south in the Peak District was a challenge. Aiming to walk 20km in high temperatures Katie and Indy got up at 4:30am to beat the heat, however the footpaths were rubbish - they didn’t exist - so the pair had to ploug through fields of rushes, being harassed by horseflies, and carrying bags weighing over 25kgs. On the Ardnamurchan peninsula, after one fateful night, they ended up absolutely covered in ticks, and had to flick off hundreds of ticks from the tent (but they were stuck to the tent for days). After this tick invasion, Indy had some Lyme’s disease symptoms, so had to grab some antibiotics before carrying on.
WHAT ARE YOU MOST LOOKING FORWRAD TO?
Katie and Indy are looking forward to reflecting back on their months of walking, plus planning future adventures! They’re not looking forward to the adventure being over, however not having to build their home each night and having a few home comforts will be welcome. Being able to look back on how they’ve adapted and how resilient they now are and how smaller tasks will seem so easy - like walking to the shops. They are looking forward to seeing how much they’ve raised for HWDT. It’s hard to grasp how far they’ve come along the way and how much money has been raised for HWDT!
There is still time to donate and help Katie and Indy smash their fundraising target. Help power them through the last 24 hours by donating today. All money raised will help protect our precious marine life by advancing the knowledge of the species in our seas, inspiring people to take action and driving forward ocean recovery.