Adventure seekers John Doherty and Wayne Swan were able to cross a new challenge off their bucket lists last month when they climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in aid of two local charities.

Mr Doherty and Mr Swan, both coworkers at Argus Group, were considered “gym buddies” and would keep each other accountable with their exercise goals.

Then when Mr Doherty decided to take his fitness regime up a notch and tackle Africa’s highest mountain, standing at 5,895 metres above sea level, Mr Swan decided to get in on the action as well.

Mr Doherty, the Executive Vice President of Property and Casualty, decided to climb the mountain last month in honour of feeding charity, Eliza DoLittle Society.

He raised close to $6,000 for the local charity and plans to use a bulk of the funds to purchase grocery vouchers to present to the organisation.

“I just think at the moment the economy isn’t all it could be and there are a lot of people struggling,” Mr Doherty said. “Eliza Dolittle is a great charity that does a lot of phenomenal work for people in need. There are a lot of great charities out there, but this one really resonated with me.”

Meanwhile, Mr Swan is hoping to collect $3,000 by the end of the month for Prison Fellowship Bermuda.

He chose that organisation seeing he’s chairman of the charity’s board and has witnessed how hard non-profit organisations have been hit on the Island.

“Local charities are working with less, but the demand and call for them has not diminished,” Mr Swan said. “There are more people who are looking for help and a hand up, which I’ve seen first hand from my role with PFB.”

Both men said every penny raised from their fundraising drive will go towards their respective charities; they covered the trip’s expenses entirely on their own.

Since deciding to do the trek last August or September, the co-workers have had just a few months to train.

However, nothing could prepare them for the emotional and physical highs and lows that would come with their February 5 to 11 journey.

“On the last day it was really tough because we had massive snow storms so we were just knee deep in snow,” Mr Doherty explained.

“It was like a ten hour hike to summit the mountain and get back down. You leave at midnight and get back to the base camp at 10.30am.

“The snow was over our knees, so it felt we were climbing it twice. And every time we took a few steps forward, we would slide a few steps back.”

For Mr Swan the biggest hurdle came after falling ill with a serious cough and not being able to get a full night’s sleep.

“One day during the trek, I got caught in the rain and couldn’t reach the raincoat in my backpack so got wet,” he said. “I believe that’s how the cough started and it got worse as I was sleeping.

“It didn’t affect me trekking, but I was probably averaging three or four hours of sleep, if that.”

Mr Doherty was concerned that his climbing partner might not be able to attempt the summit, but thanks to support from their organising team ‘Climb Kili’ he was able to go ahead.

However, Mr Swan reached a point where he was physically drained and almost ready to give up.

“I was glad that we couldn’t see to the top of the mountain because of the snow. If we could, I probably would have given up because I had nothing else to give,” he said.

“The guys from Climb Kili, as well as John, kept encouraging me — but for me the last two or three hours were murder.”

The best part of the climb came when they reached the summit at Uhuru Peak.

Mr Doherty said: “I got up there and I got a high of sorts. I didn’t feel any cold and took off my jacket and gloves to get a couple of photos. When we got up there I just loved it. It was beautiful and clear and absolutely fantastic.

“Now I’m look forward to the next adventure. At the moment I’m looking into maybe doing Annapurna/ Everest Base Camp.”

For Mr Swan, a feeling of deep satisfaction came from knowing that the months of training — including running, walking, climbing stairs and hiking with a backpack on, while getting strange looks from passersby — was all worth it. “It meant a lot for me to get there, it was elation,” he said.

They said they would recommend this kind of trekking adventure to anyone and everyone. “It’s a phenomenal journey, not just the climb, but meeting the people and seeing the different cultures,” according to Mr Doherty. “It’s the whole package and makes you realise how lucky you really are.”

During their time in Tanzania, they also had the chance to go on safari and stayed in luxury tents at Serengeti. The men agreed it was a journey of a lifetime.

To help Mr Swan reach his fundraising goal, or to find out more information on Prison Fellowship Bermuda, e-mail prisonfellowship@northrock.bm.