A Grandad-of-five is set to take on the treacherous foothills of the Himalayas in memory of his wife who died of Brain Cancer.

Glenn Karpel, 68 from Warfield works full-time in IT Operations and will be the eldest participant starting this ambitious expedition on Wednesday, October 4 from Dibrugarh on the Brahmaputra river.

After his wife, Penny Rowland, passed away from a brain tumour at 66, the Warfield man has since raised over £4,000 for Brain Tumour Research.

The 10-day Indian trek will be another challenge inspired by Penny and her incredible courage during the eight-year debilitating illness.

Glenn said: “I’ve spent the last couple of years getting fit both physically and mentally for the challenge. In that time, I’ve grown older but have worked hard on conditioning my body. I’ll be carrying my own equipment which weighs 26kg, including all my food, clothing and water for the full 10 days.”

“We’ll be very remote, away from the main towns and villages. At the end of each day, we will have to make camp for the night and pack it away in the morning, ready for our next checkpoint. It is so much more than just walking up a mountain. Persistence and stamina are key to a successful event.”

 The Himalayas is the highest mountain range in the world and stretches 2,500km. Glenn will contend with changes in altitude as he ascends 10,000ft, facing temperatures ranging from 9 to 30 degrees Celsius.

This comes after his previous challenge in 2019 when he took on the Borneo jungle over six days.

Glenn added: “This challenge will be so much more difficult compared to Borneo four years ago. The mountains will be far more taxing, whilst carrying everything for myself. However, it’s nothing compared to the symptoms and treatment that Penny endured throughout her diagnosis.”

The Brain Cancer charity has thanked Glenn for his continued support to help raise awareness for increased research investment from the government.

Mel Tiley, community development manager at Brain Tumour Research, said: “Penny’s story is a stark reminder of the indiscriminate nature of this disease, which can affect anyone at any time.

“We’re really grateful to Glenn for taking on an incredibly brave fundraising challenge and signing our petition to help us to raise awareness.

“For too long governments have put brain tumours on the ‘too difficult to think about’ pile. Five years after the Government announced £40 million for brain cancer research, less than £11 million has been spent. Patients and families continue to be let down by a funding system that is built in silos and not fit for purpose.”