Though local adventurer Martyn Bould was forced to end his trek to the top of the 22,840-ft Mt Aconcagua in Argentina earlier than planned, the 78-year-old still managed to raise an impressive $16,000 for the CI Red Cross.
Bould, 78, speaking with the Cayman Compass Wednesday night at a reception to celebrate his return, said, while he was a little disappointed that he could not complete his ‘Climb for Red’ campaign, he was pleased with the response to his fundraising efforts.
Bould said he had to turn back from the climb at Nido de Condores camp at 18,450ft, when it became increasingly risky to his health.
“The only thing I could do at that point was to say to the guide ‘here is a Red Cross shirt, when you’re going up to the summit, please take the shirt and put it on top of the monument on the summit’. That’s exactly what he did so the Cayman Islands was well represented on the summit of the highest mountain outside of Asia,” Bould, a local surveyor, explained.
Aconcagua in Argentina, which is some 22,840 ft, is deemed to be the highest peak in the Western Hemisphere.
The local adventurer assured this is not the end of the fundraising effort.
“We’re certainly going to keep trying to raise more money. We’re going to UK next so that we can raise some more money,” he said.
The surveyor selected Mt Aconcagua for his ‘Climb for Red’ campaign, which he commenced in January, to raise awareness about the work the Red Cross does in Cayman and around the world.
CI Red Cross director Jondo Obi, who attended the reception, did a presentation on the work the local organisation does in the community.
She said she was proud of Bould’s efforts and his commitment to supporting the Red Cross.
The funds raised, she said, will go to help continue many of the programmes and projects under the Red Cross umbrella.
“We’re quite thankful and grateful for [Martyn] because not only is he raising funds, but he’s also raising awareness,” Obi said.
Bould previously climbed Tanzania’s Mt Kilimanjaro in 2019 as part of his fundraising campaign.
Anyone who wishes to donate to the campaign can do so via the Red Cross.
Related Videos
