Will Parish’s bucket list looks a little something like this, Duke of ED *tick*, Kokoda Track *tick*, Everest Base Camp *tick*, Mera Peak *tick* and now, Mount Kilimanjaro *TICK*

Will admits he’s very much an outdoorsy person and with that impressive bucket list, it’s not hard to see why.

“I find travelling to other countries gives me a better understanding of the way people live and also the struggles they have in their lives and how lucky we are in our Country.”

Will was the first person at James Sheahan Catholic High School to receive the gold Duke of Edinburgh award in 2012. After he left school, he was then asked to be a mentor along the Kokoda Track for a group from Western Australia. Will explained, “I found this a very rewarding yet challenging experience. The challenge of the track and also the challenge of motivating a group to believe in themselves and achieve something for their own personal experience.”

The next challenge Will was to take on, was the trek to Everest base camp, though this was delayed due to the earthquake in Nepal.

Motivated by a desire to help, the trekking group decided to raise money in a much-needed effort to rebuild communities in Nepal. The money raised by the group went to rebuilding a school in the mountainous regions of Nepal and the money raised from the Orange community was enough for an entire classroom. Yay Orange!

In appreciation the Nepalese gave Will naming rights to the room. “It is now named after an Orange local, who pioneered the use of oxygen in the pursuit of climbing Mount Everest, his name is George Finch.”

After finally getting to Everest base camp with his group, Will then returned to climb Mera peak which is an impressive 6654m, this time he was mountaineering through glaciers and ice fields and pushed through a jaw dropping -33 degrees at the top.

Last year Will was contacted by the company that ran the Mera peak trek, they asked if he would be interested in going to Africa to climb Kilimanjaro (the highest peak in Africa), obviously his response was yes! “I only had a few months to prepare for this trek, so with some hard training, going to the gym, PT sessions and a quick pack, I was off to a mountain that was on the top of my bucket list.”

“With the time restraints I had, I was only able to do the climb itself, (there are many routes to choose the climb Kilimanjaro,) our group picked the hardest route which meant little time to get used to the altitude on the way up. It was one of the most interesting routes up the mountain, from lush green forests to trekking through a desert, to the snow covered peak of Kilimanjaro, also passing extinct volcano rim on the way to the top.”

“We started off at 12am in the morning and trekking to the peak would arrive around 7am to a magnificent 360-degree view. The last 1200 metres are straight up, that’s why it takes so long, plus you have to walk really slow in high altitude, this is so you don’t get headaches and altitude sickness. Every mountain is different but reaching the top of the mountain is an incredible experience, it lasts for a lifetime.”

It took Will and his fellow group members seven days to get to the top and two days to trek back down again.

“It’s the chance of a lifetime to climb these mountains and the people you meet on these hikes become your friends, and they stay friends for life. You each share an interest, and that’s to get to the top, so we all encourage one another constantly.”

“The thrill and the adrenaline of conquering another mountain left me wondering what’s next? maybe a mountain in South America.”

Will reaches Highest Peak in Africa