BEN NEVISOn Saturday afternoon the six of us set off from the car park at the foot of Ben Nevis - the start of our National Three Peaks Challenge attempt.
We began at a great pace towards the snow topped summit and reached the highest point in the UK within 2.5 hours! The weather was certainly in our favour, with the subsequent descent giving us a stunning sunset over the surrounding mountain range and the first flavour of what pressures awaited our knees over the coming 24 hours. A hasty meal ensued back at ‘Big Bird’ (the aptly named ReachOut! minibus) before departing for Scafell Pike at 9 pm. 
SCAFELL PIKEWith little sleep, plenty of ‘relentless’ and the bit between our teeth we arrived at Wasdale Head at 3 am on Sunday. The early morning ascent was a sight to behold as we lit up the path to the summit with our head torches. It was blowing a gale by the time we reached the summit but we were duly rewarded with a spectacular sunrise that few of us will forget. Fatigue and difficult conditions meant a slow descent but we made it back to Big Bird and were soon on our way to Wales.
SNOWDONWe began our ascent of Snowdon shortly before noon and were soon making our way along the Miners’ track. The flat, gentle walk around lake Llyn Llydow was a pleasant arrival for our weary legs. It didn’t last long however as the path soon began a steep climb to the summit. Ignoring the now numerous children that were overtaking us, we eventually made the summit, the last of the three. There was a great sense of achievement and relief, all that remained was to make our descent before the 24 hours was up. The way down was slow and exhausting but we arrived back at Big Bird 22 hours and 40 minutes after we set off from the base of Ben Nevis. Success!
The challenge was hard, both physically and mentally, but the sense of achievement was worth it. The team’s camaraderie and support certainly made this challenge in 24 hours possible and we finished the weekend with a drink to all of our generous sponsors who helped us raise over £2000 for ReachOut!By Chris Ellis
A massive congratulations and thank you from ReachOut! to all the Three Peaks team - Jonathan Devaney, George Holdstock, Paul Leader-Williams, Tom Lloyd-Hughes, Joe Morgan and Chris Ellis (left to right below). What an amazing feat! Thanks also to everyone who sponsored them. If you haven’t got round to it yet, it’s not too late! Just visit http://www.justgiving.com/reachout3peaks Thanks again!
On Sunday, as a perfect way to start the trip, a football training session was held for the kids on "Can Caralleu", an excellent astro turf football field. The kids played a match between teams from Manchester and London, with a close victory for the "Londoners"!
The meeting point on Monday afternoon was the Nou Camp, home of FC Barcelona. The Catalan club invited the whole ReachOut! group (thanks to the efforts of Javier Masana) to take a tour of the stadium, including visits to the museum, the stadium, the locker room and press room. The kids were thrilled with the experience.
After visiting the Nou Camp we went to Hard Rock Café in Plaza Catalunya to enjoy their tasty burgers. It was a beautiful sight to see the children scattered at different tables, as well as the 15 members of staff, gathering strength for the next day. The evening ended with a stroll down the Ramblas to the sea before returning to the hostel for bed. 
On Tuesday we visited Port Aventura (the second largest theme park in Europe!) where we’d been invited to spend an incredible day – for free! The boys had a great day! A huge thank you to Port Aventura.The Manchester group left for home on Wednesday morning and London spent the day strolling along the beach and playing an intense match between mentors and mentees on the splendid football pitch of La Barceloneta. To be honest, the kids played an amazing game but they couldn’t beat the quality of the ReachOut! staff…
Noteworthy is the flawless performance of each and every one of the boys, not easy for 13-14 year olds. There was not a single problem for 4 days and their behaviour was simply exemplary.
