Sue Chadwick treks the world’s toughest desert to raise awareness and funds for Bury Hospice

“Yeah, I’ll go for it!”

That was Sue Chadwick’s initial thought when she first heard about the Bury Hospice Sahara Trek.

Unlike other challenges, this unique trek sees the hospice go international for the first time.

“I was just intrigued,” said Sue, 66, an avid walker and dedicated supporter of Bury Hospice.

“I knew this would be a bit different from walking around Healey Dell or the reservoirs – it’s going to be a bit more difficult than that.”

Over the past five years, Sue has volunteered in many different capacities at Bury Hospice, helping the outreach, complementary therapy, and bereavement teams with supporting patients and families from across the community.

Bury Hospice is close to Sue’s heart, it’s the place her mother supported with donations when she was alive.

When her mum died, Sue held a fundraiser for the hospice in her memory, later placing a special heart on the Spirit Wall in tribute.

Sue has since hosted several coffee mornings, raffles, and tombolas in aid of the hospice, but the Sahara trek was something completely new and captivating.

“I like walking and I saw it as a great opportunity,” said Sue.

“I'm at that stage where I think ‘you should do things while you can.’"

“We should take the opportunities that are presented to us and give them a go.”

Sue is hoping to raise at least £1,000 for Bury Hospice, from kind donors choosing to support her once-in-a lifetime trek experience.

In efforts to get fitter and stronger, Sue goes walking wearing a weighted backpack, for up to three hours every weekend, averaging six-seven miles.

She goes to the gym twice a week, where she completes a specific training plan, and also works on strengthening her core with reformer Pilates and regular swimming.

Earlier this year, Sue ventured on an intense hiking holiday to Madeira to test how she’d feel in the prickly heat (which soared to 28 ̊C on the hottest day).

She walked 50k through mountainous terrain and forest, over four consecutive days.

The route, which although was flat in parts, was mostly steep – this put a particular strain on Sue’s legs, especially when descending.

Overall, Madeira made Sue feel confident about her fitness level and her ability to handle the heat.

She said: “I found the hiking ok; I wasn’t last in the group going uphill, and I wasn't last coming down either."

“Each morning I’d get up and think ‘yeah, I'm all right, I can do this again.’"

Sue at Bury Hospice

Sue is all set for the Sahara, now fully equipped with her polarised sunglasses, sun cream, insect repellent, hiking boots, and hat with a shield.

But before heading off, she’s preparing to walk through Lytham’s sand dunes, where she’s planning on trialling a new walking routine.

While there, she looks to tackle 20k a day by going out for a long morning walk, before coming back to her accommodation for dinner and to rest, then afterwards, heading back out for another similarly intense walking session.

She aims to do this over three or four weekends, in efforts to boost her endurance and replicate the rest and water break periods she’ll get in the desert.

Sue said: “I've got braver as I’ve got older, which is surprising; I’m always prepared to have a go.”

This is exactly what Sue did when she went to visit her daughter in New Zealand for the first time.

Whilst there, she completed a sky-dive by jumping from the tallest tower in Auckland.

“It was quite exciting,” said Sue.

“I enjoyed it but I didn't do anything like that when I was in my 30s and 40s – maybe I had to get to 60 to think ‘I can do this.’”

Sue has always exercised, but now, in later life, she’s really enjoying the thrilling challenges she sets for herself.

“I just hope I raise a lot of money”

Having climbed Ben Nevis and Mount Snowdon when she was 55 year’s old, Sue is excited about now trekking across the Sahara Desert, although, she says: “I really can’t imagine what it’s going to be like to walk through.”

Sue’s looking forward to walking through desert villages, and observing nomadic ways of living, because, she says: “It's not like anything I've ever come across – I’ve never been anywhere like that before.”

Surprisingly, Sue got her first donation before she even signed up for the trek.

She’d been visiting family in Australia when she mentioned that she was interested in giving the extreme trek a go.

Straight way, she was given a donation of $50 Australian dollars.

That was her sign to officially sign up for the trek upon returning back home to Bury.

“Alright, I’m doing it, aren’t I?” she thought.

Sue gained her second kind donation from a fellow trekker in Madeira.

She said: “That donation came from a lady who doesn’t know the hospice and will never use it, but she knew it’s for a good reason and was very kind."

“It’s lovely when you meet someone who connects with you and they want to help. It’s a nice feeling when the word spreads.”

Sue is currently planning a curry afternoon for her friends and neighbours, as a way of saying ‘thank you’ for supporting her so far. She’s also hoping to raise funds from a raffle she’s hosting, ahead of the trip to Morocco.

She said: “I’m nervous and excited at the same time. I just hope I raise a lot of money, and I hope I survive it – I’m sure I will."

“And I hope I come home feeling proud that I've done it, having really enjoyed the experience of doing something so completely different.”

Sahara Trek, 6-11^th November 2025

Please head here to support Sue

https://www.justgiving.com/page/suechadwicksaharatrek