Stoer start for ultra paddleboarder Charlie Head's Minch attempt

Endurance athlete Charlie Head is to set off from Stoer next week to cross the Minch to the Isle of Lewis on a paddleboard unsupported.

The 41-year-old last year embarked on a circumnavigation of the Scottish coastline but had to take a break due to Covid-19 regulations. He has previously paddled from Berwick upon Tweed to John O’Groats, along the North Coast and around Cape Wrath.

He is now resuming the challenge with the journey from Stoer to Lewis

Charlie is raising funds for mental health charity dare2express, which offers grants to those who need financial help to access mental health services. Covid-19 has decimated conventional fundraising activities in 2020, directly affecting the charity’s ability to fund such grants.

It is a cause dear to his heart as he himself has had his own mental health struggles. He has previously said: “Expedition life helps me, you take daily responsibility for closing in on a bigger goal, paddle by paddle. It forces you to to distill a longer journey into bitesize manageable steps.”

Charlie will be leaving Stoer early on Wednesday.

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