Jungle trek to raise money for youth mentor charity

Craig Plowman is in training to trek and raft 100km through the Colombian jungle

A youth mentor is preparing to trek and raft 100km (62 miles) through the Colombian jungle to raise money for a children's charity.

Craig Plowman, 45, from Weston-super-Mare, said the journey in November for the Jack Hazeldine Foundation (JHF) would be especially challenging as he suffers from both ulcerative colitis and enteropathic arthiritis.

He said he hoped to show his children how far he had come in four years since the diagnoses, when he had been "hobbling round the garden trying to walk".

"I felt embarrassed and ashamed, even though it wasn't my fault and so I really wanted them to see the power that comes from a very disciplined mind and the will to survive," he said.

Mr Plowman said that he and his family had gone through "a dark time, filled with heartache that took a toll on us both physically and mentally" when he was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis four years ago.

"I was 13 stone at the time and I went down to eight-and-a-half stone; just constantly going to the bathroom and lots of blood loss and all sorts of terrible things; sleep never really came.

"It was just a constant rollercoaster of pain and suffering; then the arthritis came along six months later which rendered me bedbound for about three or four weeks, because it just felt like I was made of glass," he said.

Mr Plowman mentors young people in schools as part of the Jack Hazeldine Foundation

The trek through the Columbian jungle will involve walking about 50km (31 miles) over several days across rough terrain, ascending high into the jungle canopy, then whitewater rafting along the Samana River.

"The biggest challenge that stands out above the rest is the food and the possibility of drinking contaminated water or something that might upset my stomach.

"There is also the actual physicality of it; the constant walking might present a problem or just weaknesses such as fatigue that come when you have ulcerative colitis," said Mr Plowman.

The trip will be raising funds for the North Somerset-based JHF, which offers support to vulnerable young people.

Mr Plowman runs one-on-one and group mentoring sessions in schools.

"I refused to let my illness prevent me from engaging in this vital work," he said.

"The resilience of the young people I work with inspires me to push myself on a daily basis."

Pippa Gribben, CEO of the JHF, said the jungle trek was a "deeply personal journey for Craig" and that he was training hard to prepare both mentally and physically.

"He's a brilliant mentor whose compassion, wisdom and empathy shines through in all aspects of his work and life," she said.

"The funds he raises will go directly towards our one-to-one work mentoring young people in North Somerset."

The week-long challenge starts on 22 November.