A GROUP of volunteers has decided to use the 10th anniversary of the release of their guide book to raise vital funds for charity.

In 1938, Alfred Wainwright set off from Settle railway station down the eastern flanks of the Pennines to Hadrian’s Wall, before returning to Settle on the western side.

On arriving back in his home town of Blackburn after the 211-mile journey, Wainwright jotted down a description of his journey – initially calling it his Pennine Campaign. After showing it to office colleagues it was put into a drawer and forgotten.

It was not until 1986 that Wainwright’s guide – A Pennine Journey: The Story of a Long Walk in 1938 – was published.

In 1998, David and Heather Pitt, members of The Wainwright Society, recreated the walk, adapted for today’s roads and public rights-of-way, and A Pennine Journey was released in 2010.

Ever since, 10 per cent of all guide book royalties have been donated to the Great North Air Ambulance Service (GNAAS). Their planned event to mark the anniversary would have seen members of the Pennine Journey Supporters Club taking part in a celebratory walk, but it had to be cancelled due to Covid-19.

Instead, because of the GNAAS’s falling income, they decided to use the milestone to try and raise £1,000 by donating everything made from sales of the book to the charity.

“We thought this is one thing we could do to give them our support,” explained David Pitt. “Ever since the guide was published they’ve received 10 per cent of royalties. What we now want to do is forgo everything we make and give it to them.”

Jim Entwistle, from GNAAS said: “The club wants to use the reprint of Wainwright’s original Pennine Journey, as well as the 10th anniversary of the accompanying guide book, to raise money for our charity at a time when we need all the support we can get.

“We’d like to thank the club and all those walkers who will no doubt be keen to get behind their initiative.”

Visit www.penninejourney.org.uk/gnaas-guide-book.html.