TWO adventurous people from Dorset have raised around £7,500 for charity after climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.

Shaun King, 30, from Ensbury Park and Steve Hannay, 46, from Canford Heath, took on the challenge for Above & Beyond Charities, which supports Bristol’s nine main hospitals, including the children’s ward.

Setting off from base in Tanzania, it took eight days to do the walk and return back safely home, but Shaun says that it was worth it for the money they raised.

He said: “It was two days of walking before we saw Kilimanjaro for the first time, but remembering the support that we had back home definitely spurred us on. The closer you get to the mountain, the less daunting it is, but it was still tough on us.

“You could be the fittest person in the world but that won’t help when it comes to dealing with the altitude. When I got to the top, I was absolutely exhausted, but determined to make it, and when you get there, you get this real sense of achievement.”

Shaun was scaling the height after his son, Luca, two, was rushed to hospital, aged 16 months old, when he accidentally turned the hot tap on whilst his own legs were underneath, resulting in 30 per cent burns.

Luca now has to take medicine, have physio, and wear pressure garments on his legs 24 hours a day.

Shaun has raised between £5,500 - £6,000 and combined with Steve’s £1,500, they are three quarters of the way to the £10,000 target that Luca’s dad set for himself to raise for the good cause.

“I would like to thank everyone for their support.

“After about five or six days in, I was thinking how hard it is, but then when you think of the money raised and why you’re doing it, it encourages you. We’re already looking at doing another challenge next year.”

For more information, go to Justgiving.com/S-King2