Ben Hope climb will be emotional journey for Adele Perry
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THE eldest daughter of a famous climber who died on a Sutherland peak with a fellow mountaineer, is to scale the same hill that claimed them – to raise money in her father’s memory.
Poignantly, Adele Perry (24) will also make the attempt on the first anniversary of the tragedy.
Father-of-three Steve Perry (47), who lived at Dalcross near Inverness, was killed in February with Andy Nisbet (65).
They got into severe difficulty on 3041ft-high Ben Hope, south-east of Tongue.
Steve initially survived the fall and managed to make a call for help by mobile phone, also saying he only had an hour to live.
Their bodies were recovered after a two-day operation involving nearly 50 members of mountain rescue teams and two Coastguard helicopters.
On February 5 Adele will climb Ben Hope in memory of her father, raising money for Assynt and Dundonnell mountain rescue teams, two of the groups that risked their lives to try and save the pair.
“I know it will be hard and emotional and I will be thinking of my dad every step of the way,” said Adele who lives at Littleborough in Greater Manchester. “I just felt I wanted to give something back and to make my dad proud. I am hoping that some of the rescue team will be joining me on the day.”
Adele revealed that her father, who is believed to have been roped with Andy, had initially survived the fall.
She said: “They were near the summit when they fell and my dad made two calls – one to alert the emergency services and the other to say he only had 60 minutes left to live because of the conditions. I think the first call was around 3.45pm and the second was a couple of hours later.
“They were into winter climbing routes on Ben Hope and had waited for weeks for the weather to be right to establish a new route. I am glad they had done what they set out to do and finished the route. I did not know Andy, but I know he and dad became great friends and my dad told me lots of stories about him. They were very close.
“I am not a climber and I have not done a Munro, but I did climb Snowdon with my dad when I was six years old. He was such an inspiration to me. Dad achieved so much but remained a very humble man. I loved him to bits. I am doing this to keep his memory alive and say thanks to those who risked their lives to try and save my dad and Andy.
“Dad lived for climbing and the only comfort I can take was that he died doing something he loved so much. He lived for the moment – and he had many great moments – to get the most out of life because he said you never knew when it would end.”
In the winter of 2005/06, Steve became the first person to complete a continuous unsupported winter round of Scotland’s Munros entirely on foot.
He was also the first person to have finished two continuous Munro rounds, having also walked Land’s End to John O’Groats via every mainland 3000ft mountain in between, in a seven-and-a-half-month trek in 2003.
Andy, who lived in Boat of Garten, was a former Scottish Mountaineering Club president and received the Scottish Award for Excellence in Mountain Culture in 2014.
* To donate to Adele’s walk go to:
Assynt MRT – www.justgiving.com/fundraising/adele-perry1
Dundonnell MRT – www.justgiving.com/fundraising/adele-perry2
