A Fife minister is lacing up her walking boots ahead of an arduous charity trek in Peru.
Reverend Monika Redman, the leader of St Leonard’s Church in Dunfermline, has announced plans to try and become the first female Church of Scotland minister to trek to Machu Picchu.
The challenge is being undertaken as part of her effort to raise at least £3,775 for Blythswood Care, which run a Christmas Shoebox Appeal to support vulnerable people across Europe, Africa and Asia
The 48-year-old will scale the 3,000 steps to the Temple of the Sun, and while she is excited about the journey, Mrs Redman is expecting some pain along the way.
She said: “When I was a child I used to read adventure stories and I remember one about children who discovered a long lost city deep in the mountains, which was still inhabited.
“I used to pretend I was an archaeologist and I would find such a city so in a way this promises to be a dream come true.
“I am excited and a bit nervous about the trek because I am not a fan of walking up hills and it is going to be hard graft and entail sore legs, blisters and sogginess as it could rain every day.”
Mrs Redman’s trek is expected to take around ten days, for which she is preparing by taking daily ten-mile training walks.
Throughout the trip she will be carrying a day bag, while a mule will carry her luggage.
Ahead of her journey, she went to an Alpaca farm on the outskirts of Edinburgh to acquaint herself with some of the natives.
The quirky-looking animals, related to llamas, are farmed for their fleeces and used for animal tourism in Peru.
Mrs Redman said: “Meeting the Alpacas and taking them for a walk was a lot of fun and helped build anticipation for the trek.
“The congregation at St Leonard’s Parish Church have been involved in the annual shoebox appeal, which involves sending practical items like toiletries, small items of clothing and other gifts to disadvantaged adults and children at Christmas, for many years.
”They are shipped out to lighten the winter for people who have very little and live in desperate parts of Europe.
“It is a privilege to raise money to support this important work.”
