LIFEBOAT volunteers and supporters in Minehead are preparing to welcome crew member Rob Hickley on Wednesday (April 23) as he completes a 630-mile South West Coast Path charity walk.

Mr Hickley has already beaten his £5,000 fund-raising target with still two days left before finishing back at his Minehead Boathouse, where he crews the town’s two Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) lifeboats.

Known in Minehead for being an ‘aquatic action man’ because of his love of kitesurfing, he has already brought in nearly £5,500 plus a further £1,265 in gift aid for the RNLI.

Rob Hickley at Land's End during his South West Coast Path charity walk for the RNLI.
Rob Hickley at Land's End during his South West Coast Path charity walk for the RNLI. ( )

Mr Hickley set off on March 24 from the RNLI’s national headquarters in Poole and is on target to complete the mammoth trek in 31 days.

He has been trekking alone and unsupported, carrying everything he needs for the trip on his back, and topping up from supply drops in Post Offices on the route.

Mr Hickley, who trained for several months in preparation for his feat, described the walk as ‘beautiful but tough’.

He has been averaging about 20 miles per day over the past month and will camp overnight near Lynton on Tuesday before the final leg of the journey on Wednesday.

Trekking alone on the South West Coast Path to raise funds for the RNLI is Minehead lifeboatman Rob Hickley.
Trekking alone on the South West Coast Path to raise funds for the RNLI is Minehead lifeboatman Rob Hickley. ( )

By the end of his walk Mr Hickley will have climbed nearly 115,000 feet, or four times the height of Mount Everest, crossed 302 bridges and 931 stiles, and passed 40 of the RNLI’s 238 lifeboat stations.

Donations have been pouring in every day and anybody who still wants to support Mr Hickley’s fund-raising initiative should visit his JustGiving website page here.