The chair of North Yorkshire Council has embarked on the famous Coast-to-Coast Walk to raise money for charity while promoting local businesses along the 190-mile route.
Cllr George Jabbour is undertaking the gruelling challenge from St Bees in Cumbria to Robin Hood’s Bay in North Yorkshire in the first major fundraising drive in his role as the council’s chair. He will be raising funds for Yorkshire Air Ambulance, which is his charity of the year.
He has also bought a Coast-to-Coast Passport, which was launched earlier this year to inspire walkers and boost trade for businesses on the route.
The 140-page booklet encourages hikers to collect stamps at 29 locations along the path, including shops, pubs and visitor attractions. It includes useful local information as well as special offers from businesses along the route.
Cllr Jabbour said:
I have never done anything near the scale of this challenge before and while I am immensely excited, I am also conscious of the magnitude of this task.
The scenery is among the most stunning anywhere in the country, and I am really looking forward to witnessing it myself.
It’s an opportunity to raise funds for Yorkshire Air Ambulance, which is such a worthy cause, while also highlighting the new passport scheme which is a brilliant idea to help to promote local businesses along the route.
Cllr Jabbour is undertaking the walk in stages and hopes to finish the challenge during this month. He announced last month (July) that Yorkshire Air Ambulance is his charity of the year during his time as the council chair after taking on the role in May.
Yorkshire Air Ambulance is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year and attended to 1,226 patients in 2024.
The Coast-to-Coast Passport has been developed by volunteers from Richmond Yorkshire Community Interest Company (CIC), with funding provided by North Yorkshire Council, National Park authorities, businesses and the Wainwright Society.
The leader of North Yorkshire Council, Cllr Carl Les, said the passport gave walkers the chance “to have a lasting memento of their achievement” and provide a “boost to the local economy”.
The leader of North Yorkshire Council, Cllr Carl Les said:
I would like to wish George all the very best in his challenge, and I am hoping he gets as much support as possible to raise money for such a good cause.
The Coast-to-Coast Walk provides anyone who is brave enough to undertake it with the chance to see firsthand our wonderful countryside across the North of England.
The benefits of being out in our wonderful rural areas also helps with your health and wellbeing, while also having the chance to support our local businesses which are located along the route.
The Coast-to-Coast Passport volunteer coordinator, Donald Cline, said:
We are delighted that George has decided to undertake the walk, with a copy of the Coast-to-Coast Passport in his backpack, while raising money for such a great cause at the same time.
The passport has been a real success since we launched it in April. Walkers from all over the world have really embraced the idea of becoming ‘stamp collectors’, as they traverse this world-famous route.
The passports also give walkers the chance to interact with ‘locals’ and, if they wish, take advantage of offers only available to passport holders.
We would like to thank everyone who has helped us, including the valuable support from North Yorkshire Council, to make the passport a reality, and I would like to wish George the very best of luck on his coast-to-coast adventure.
Following a £5.8 million investment from Natural England, the Coast-to-Coast route is set to become a National Trail next year, which gives it special status as a route showcasing some of Britain’s most scenic landscapes.
The walk was devised by author Alfred Wainwright in 1973, and it is estimated more than 6,000 people attempt to complete the route, which passes through the Lake District, the Yorkshire Dales and the North York Moors, every year.
The tradition of undertaking the walk means walkers carry in their pocket or rucksack a pebble taken from the Irish Sea at St Bees to drop in the North Sea at Robin Hood’s Bay.
Anyone who would like to sponsor Cllr Jabbour for his Coast-to-Coast challenge can donate via his Just Giving online page at www.justgiving.com/page/yorkshire-air-ambulance
