Paul and brother planning to reach new heights with Everest charity trek

BROTHERS Paul and Kevin Hayes will be leaving lovely West Cork to trek to the base camp of the world’s highest mountain, Everest, on Friday September 16th.

Anyone who follows the Independent councillor and his brother on social media will be all too familiar with their ‘hike life’ over the last two years, as the brothers put in long hours and many vertical miles as part of their training. Paul and Kevin had initially planned to do the hike in the Himalayas in March 2021, but, like many plans, Covid got in the way and their departure date for Kathmandu was postponed several times.

During lockdown, Paul spoke of the irony of being confined to a 5km limit near his family home at beautiful Broadstrand in Courtmacsherry, when really what he had hoped to be doing was putting in lots of practice on the mountains for the 6km vertical climb to the Everest Base Camp.

During the peak of the pandemic – the Level Five lockdown –Instead, Paul was confined to training on one of the flattest terrains in West Cork!

‘Now,’ he said, ‘we are really looking forward to walking in the footsteps of some of the world’s all-time great explorers, and experiencing the renowned hospitality of the Nepalese people.’

Aside from their adventure, the two men are hoping to use the opportunity to raise money for two local charities that are close to their hearts – the Irish Community Air Ambulance and Clonakilty Community Youth Centre.

They have set up a Go Fund Me page – called Paul & Kevin’s Everest Base Camp Charity Trek – and 100% of the money raised will be divided equally between the two charities.

They plan to post regular updates about the trek on Facebook and Instagram, where Wifi allows!

The posts – like their more arduous training exercises to date – will give people a glimpse of the challenge involved without having to worry about breathlessness and fatigue.

In the meantime, Paul’s passion for the great outdoors has led him and walking buddy Ceara Sexton to establish a new business venture which is called Namaste Wellness Retreats.

The brothers may very well need a wellness retreat when they return from their three-week trek.