FALCONERS Daisy Bessant and Shannen McAleer are celebrating climbing Wales’ highest peak despite being stopped in their tracks just short of the summit by a blizzard.
Daisy, 18, and 23-year-old Shannen work at Gauntlet Birds of Prey Eagle and Vulture Park in Knutsford, which has more than 20 vultures.
Daisy and Shannen are planning to travel to South Africa next month to volunteer at the VulPro Vulture rehabilitation centre.
The centre aims to release healthy birds back into the wild and provide a safe haven for those unable to be released.
Gauntlet set up the Gauntlet Conservation Trust in 2014, and supports a number of conservation projects, including VulPro.
White Backed and Hooded Vultures are in danger from poachers, who lace with poison carcasses which are fed on by the birds because circling vultures alert Rangers to poaching.
Daisy and Shannen planned to climb Mount Snowdon in north Wales in November to raise £1,500 to buy equipment designed to help treat poisoned vultures.
They were forced to abandon their attempt because of bad weather, and made their second bid yesterday, Wednesday.
Daisy said: “We faced very strong winds, a blizzard, temperatures of minus 15, steep hills, vertical drops, nature’s way of exfoliating by blasting snow in our faces and slips and trips - mainly me.
“However, it was an incredible experience, and we enjoyed every minute. We took the route up from Llanberis, and reached more than 3,000 feet.
“Unfortunately, due to a blizzard we could not go right up to the summit, but we achieved just below that, being 80 metres below the top.
“The temperate near the top was minus 15 taking into account the wind chill, and the wind was between 60 and 70 miles an hour.”
Daisy and Shannen were well prepared for their challenge, being equipped with crampons and ice axes, and set off for the summit at 9am.
They set up a justgiving page to seek donations, and have raised £1,200, including £900 from the online page.
Daisy said: “We want to say a massive thank you to everyone who has donated - we never thought we would even reach the amount we have.
“Shannen and I are going to South Africa to work at the VulPro centre, which does everything it possibly can to help the vultures.
“We wanted to do a fundraiser to raise as much money as possible to take out with us to VulPro.
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“So in November we attempted to walk up Snowdon, but got turned back due to the bad weather, so had to return without getting to the top.”
They would welcome donations of syringes, catheters, bandages and old towels to take to South Africa, which can be dropped off at Gauntlet in Manchester Road.
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