Sunderland boy aiming to become youngest person to complete 192-mile Coast-to-Coast walk

Ollie Sainthouse, five, lives in Ashbrooke with parents Rachel and Paul and little sister Jennifer, two. On Friday, August 18 Ollie and Paul set off on the coast-to-coast route from St Bees in Cumbria to Robin Hood’s Bay in North Yorkshire.

Ollie is a pupil at Hill View Infant Academy and his parents made sure they left the last two weeks of the school summer holidays free to take on what is a gigantic challenge for little legs, much of which Ollie has undertaken wearing his beloved Sunderland AFC shirts.

Accommodation on his incredible two-week hike has been a combination of campsites, B&Bs and wild camping. He is currently on schedule to complete his epic trek on Saturday, September 2.

Father and son are using their journey to raise funds for the Great North Air Ambulance.

Ollie is a keen walker. He has also so far conquered 45 of the 214 Wainwrights – Lake District peaks of over 1,000ft.

His mam Rachel said: “They’re averaging between 10 and 15 miles a day and he’s just loved it.

“He was desperate to do this big challenge. We thought it was pretty much impossible, but we said yes and he’s just kept going.

“I think the most impressive thing about it is the kindness of strangers. Paul’s had hundreds of Facebook messages of support every day from all over the world. People have left Ollie little gifts along the route; money to buy himself treats. People are going out to meet him now.

“He’s taking it all in his stride, but we’re blown away by it. I’m unbelievably proud of him.

"I suspected he had it in him, but thought the reality of getting up every single day and walking during his summer holidays would stop him at some point.

“But he’s just so motivated. I’m proud of Paul too, because it’s been a lot to organise.”

To sponsor Ollie’s amazing efforts, visit his JustGiving page. His experiences will be documented on a YouTube page called Ollie’s Dadventures.