Grace McBride will join her good friend, Turia Pitt to trek to Everest Basecamp and raise money for charity.
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A dream she has had since she was a child, the 29-year-old will join a group of 20 as they embark on the journey through the Himalayas.
“Turia decided to do it and when she told me I remembered being a kid and wanting to see Everest and I knew from then I wanted to too,” Grace said.
“I know it will be a good physical and mental challenge.
“I work with Turia and I have seen firsthand the work Interplast do and I wanted to help.”
Interplast is a charity providing free surgical treatment to people living with treatable disabilities in the Asia-Pacific region. Miss Pitt is an ambassador of the charity and has raised money for them on several occasions, including her trek of the Kokoda trail in 2016.
“The work Interplast do is really incredible,” Grace said.
“Sending Australian doctors and nurses to not only preform surgery and changes the lives of people living in the Asia-Pacific, but also the fact that they are training staff on the ground to really improve medicals services in those areas.
“The operations aren’t groundbreaking. They are really simple, but they change lives.”
The 11-day trek will take the group 5380 metres above sea level, a journey the Ulladulla woman thinks will be “pretty challenging”.
“I'm a little bit head-in-the-sand about how hard it will be, but it’s for a good cause,” she said.
“I'm definitely out of my comfort zone, I've never done anything like this.
Grace has been training tirelessly for the trip, trekking to Pigeon House Mountain almost weekly and “constantly climbing stairs”.
“I’m doing lots of walking,” she said.
“I try and do about 50 kilometres a week plus personal training and pilates.
“Oh, and there are lots of stairs, cardio and leg strengthening.”
The team will arrives in Kathmandu where they will have the opportunity to see the work Interplast do in the local communities before embarking on the 70 kilometre climb.
“It's seven days up and five days back,” Grace said.
“We do two days of walking and then break for a day to acclimatise as we try to avoid altitude sickness.
“I'm flitting between being nervous and excited, but I'm looking forward to taking it on,” she said.
Grace, Turia and the team leave for Nepal on May 8. To donate to Grace please visit:
