Courageous youngsters conquer peak

The climbers' aim was to raise &\#163;70,000 for optical charity Sight Savers International, and publicity for their expedition was boosted by an appearance on BBC TV's Blue Peter. The expedition's success was the culmination of a nine-month training programme (News, August 27). The group set out to retrace the steps of seven blind African men who reached the summit 30 years ago. They began the final ascent of the 18,600ft Kenyan peak at midnight and took eight hours, battling against sub-zero temperatures, harsh terrain and altitude sickness. Byron Cooke, 14 (Shropshire), Louise Waddington, 16 (Surrey) and Deborah Langan, 14 (Glasgow) all made it to Gillman's Point on Mount Kilimanjaro. However, Charles Ronayne, 15 (Essex) and Joanne McGowan 15, (Yorkshire) climbed to 18,000ft before altitude sickness forced them to turn back.