“I didn’t want to be left behind” — Anna McCabe on three treks, £21,500, and why she keeps saying yes

You saw the advert for the Sahara trek and signed up that same evening. Looking back, what do you think would have happened if you’d slept on it?

We wouldn’t have gone. There was a friend there who said, “You need to sign up tonight.” And I think if we hadn’t, we would have talked ourselves out

How did friends and family react when you told them?

We’re quite known for doing lots of walking, so they weren’t really that surprised. I think it was more a case of waiting for the “oh yeah, we’ll sponsor you” moment.

Your husband wanted to step outside his comfort zone. How would you describe your own motivation?

Honestly? I would have been jealous if I hadn’t gone with him. Pure FOMO. But once we’d done it, that was it. We were hooked.

You had no personal connection to St Catherine’s when you signed up. Has that changed?

It has. On the second trek, a couple of the nurses came along — one as a supporter, one as a fundraiser. That was the first time I got to talk to people who actually work there about what our money can do. It’s really quite moving when you hear the reality of it, and how much they appreciate what we do. You become part of the community.

The Morocco trek was originally planned as a route through Petra in Jordan. What happened?

World affairs at the time made travel there feel increasingly uncertain, and with a group of people all at different levels of comfort with the situation, St Catherine’s took the decision to reroute, to keep everyone safe. We found out about six weeks before we were due to leave. We really wanted to go to Petra, and it was a shame at the time — but Morocco turned out to be just incredible. With any luck, Cambodia will be the one that goes exactly as planned. That’ll be a first.

Cambodia is described as hotter and more humid than your previous treks. Are you doing anything differently to prepare?

You can’t really train for the heat over here. We walk a lot anyway — a typical weekend with the dog covers six to ten miles. In the last month or two before the trek we add rucksacks with water bottles in them, just to get used to the weight. The main luggage travels between camps on a camel or mule, so during the day you’re only ever carrying your day pack. You’re really well looked after on these trips — the whole thing is incredibly well organised.

Has there been a moment on any of the treks — or in training — where you’ve genuinely thought “I cannot do this”?

Not on the walking itself. But I find it quite difficult to sleep in a new environment. I would wake up in the morning thinking, “I still haven’t slept properly.” By night three though, I’m just out for eight hours — you get so tired that it sorts itself out. I find the lack of sleep a bit of a challenge at first, but it passes.

What are the sleeping arrangements like?

Two-person tents — quite small, with foam mattresses about an inch thick. They put the tents up for you and take them down in the morning, so you just sort out what goes inside. In the evenings, everyone gathers in the main tent for meals, and then you take your mattress to your own tent. If your neighbour snores, you get used to it.

What do you take in when you’re in these places — is it hard to absorb the views when you’re focused on getting through?

With the mountain treks, you sometimes have to remind yourself to stop and look up because the paths are quite rocky and you’re watching your feet. The Sahara was incredible because you can just look around the whole time — it’s quite flat and stony, which surprised me. But you do have to sometimes stop and just take it in, because the views are stunning.

What’s the one thing that’s always in your bag — the non-negotiable?

My Kindle. But actually, what I love is what I don’t take. I don’t take a hairbrush. I take a bit of moisturiser and that’s it. You’re out there and it just doesn’t matter. I love being away from everything and not having to worry about what you look like — or what you smell like, because everybody smells the same. There’s even 5G in the Sahara, apparently, but my phone goes in my bag and stays there. I don’t want to know what’s going on.

Did you have music playing while you walked?

I’m not really a music person on the treks. There’s so much chat — you join a conversation, leave it, join another one, walk by yourself for a while. It’s just this fluid interaction all day. Some weird and wonderful conversations happen. You go off on tangents and feel connected pretty quickly.

When you cross the finish line, what goes through your mind?

It’s quite emotional. Relief that it’s over. Pride that you’ve done it. A real sense of achievement. It’s just a mix of everything.

The group who did the Sahara were strangers at the start — yet people keep coming back trek after trek. What is it about these trips that does that?

I think you just have such a good time. I’ve literally been crying with laughter — that thing where you catch someone’s eye and just can’t stop. That doesn’t happen often enough in everyday life. You forget about how challenging the fundraising was or how hard it was to hit that target. When you do get there it’s like, “Thank goodness for that” — and then somehow, a year later, you’ve signed up again. The camaraderie is the main thing for me.

Each participant has a significant fundraising target. What have you learnt about what actually works?

Do something people will enjoy and the fundraising follows. Think big rather than little and often. People want an experience — especially now with the cost of living. They want something for their money. For the Sahara, Darren ran golf days at Mannings Heath Golf Club, who were hugely supportive, and I did wine tasting tours and a masquerade ball at Mannings Heath Wine Estate. For Cambodia, Darren still has another golf day lined up and I’ve been running 80s daytime discos at Mungo’s Bar in Horsham. They’ve grown in size with every one and there’s a fourth coming up on 13^th June. Having said they’re successful, tickets are still on sale and we could always do with more people – so if you’re free, please come along in June!

Any other advice for anyone thinking about signing up?

Just ask local businesses — you’d be surprised how receptive people are. We went into the Red Deer pub in Horsham looking for a raffle prize and they said they couldn’t do that — but they had a gap in their monthly charity quiz and offered it to us instead. That was five hundred pounds. Going in and asking can feel nerve-wracking, but you don’t know until you try.

St Catherine’s offer individual fundraising support — how valuable was that?

Really valuable, especially at the start when you’re thinking, “How on earth am I going to raise two thousand pounds?” They’ll meet with you, go through your life and your interests, and help you work out what you could do. It makes it feel far less frightening — and you realise that if you break it down, it’s actually very manageable.

Since signing up in 2019, do you have a rough sense of how much you’ve raised in total?

Twenty-one and a half thousand pounds. Which still surprises me when I say it out loud.

Who do you think these treks are for — is it a particular type of person?

I think they appeal to a broad range of people. You get those whose relatives or friends have been cared for by the hospice, and those like us who didn’t have that connection but just fancied a challenge or something different. They do tend to attract people who are a little older — maybe because they’ve got more time or headspace for the fundraising. But I’d like to think it’s a very inclusive group where everyone’s welcome.

What would you say to someone sitting on the fence about the 2027 trek?

Absolutely do it. You’d be missing such an opportunity.

What do you know now that you wish someone had told you before the first trek?

On the fundraising — aim big and go for it. And for the trek itself — just enjoy every single second.

The 2027 trek is about to be announced. Any chance you’ll be signing up for a fourth?

I’ve done the Sahara so I wouldn’t do it again — but I would absolutely sign up for another trek. If they ever do Petra, I’ll be first in line.