PLUCKY fundraisers cycled, canoed and hiked their way across Scotland to help raise more than £20,000 for Macmillan Cancer Support.

Three colleagues from RWE npower's Swindon office joined 40 other colleagues from Rainton, Leeds, Burton, Worcester, Hull, Solihull and Oldbury during the weekend of October 3 and 4 to take part in the challenge, which saw them cover more than 100 miles for the company's charity partner.

The challenge saw the Swindon team hike from sea level to the top of Ben Nevis - the highest point of Britain at 1,344m.

From there they travelled through the Fort William coast and onto Loch Ness, paddling through Loch Lochy before jumping back on the bikes to Fort Augustus.

The final stretch led them to Inverness, pushing through Moray Firth and finishing at the spectacular Inverness Castle.

Heather Ogston, assets credit manager from Swindon said: "The challenge was incredible; the toughest mountains and the steepest bike climbs I have ever come across, but I loved every minute of it as I was doing it for a great cause and in memory of my dear mum. The Scottish weather smiled for us and the Highlands were just stunning, making the leg burning climbs all worthwhile.

"I’ve made some amazing friends for life, and I know my mum will be proud of each and every one of us."

Each team member had an individual fundraising target of £300, which has helped to raise around £21,498 in total so far.

npower’s head of community, Clare McDougall, who joined the team on their Scottish journey said: "I am so proud of each and every colleague who took part in this massive challenge for Macmillan. We had a mixture of abilities with some people who’d never canoed before, a couple flying over the handle bars and one who hadn’t ridden a bike since she was five.

"It took us three days to complete and all our remaining energy to reach Inverness. We’ve never been so glad to see a castle in our lives. It was extremely tough at times, but we did it for those very dear friends and family members affected by cancer – and with thoughts of them we soldiered on.”

The aim for the ‘Coast to Summit to Coast’ challenge is to raise as much money as possible, with the total pot at over £42,000 once npower match the money pound for pound. For more information and to show your support donate at www.justgiving.com/companyteams/Scotlandcoast2summit2coast.