A Twins Trust team of nine climbed Snowdon on Sunday 4th July, to raise funds for our bereavement support service. They were able to meet up the night before to share introductions and experiences.

Sarah Mercer, Beth Roberts, Victoria Edwards, Lucie Wigley, Bev Mercer, Sharon Darke, Vikki Austen, Nav Dusanjh, Lee Birt

It was lovely to see both familiar and new faces. And, for those who'd previously met online, it was a chance to meet for in person for the first time. Everybody nervously discussed how much they would need to carry, what they were wearing and of course the weather!

After a bright and early breakfast, they met up with the 75 other people doing the trek, all from other baby loss charities. As expected, it was a bit of a damp start, and they experienced most weather conditions during the trek. They set off at 9am in their waterproofs before stopping about 15 minutes in to take them off again.

Layers came on and off numerous times during the walk. It was hot work at times. Bereavement Group Coordinator Sharon Darke remembers, "I hadn’t anticipated quite how cold it would be at the top, nor how steep and tricky some of the sections would be. I’m glad it felt like a challenge though."

They naturally walked in small groups at a similar pace, chatting and sharing experiences. There were some lovely views to take in near the bottom but as they got closer to the top, they could only just see in front of themselves.

Five of the team reached the summit shortly before being joined by the other four. They'd done it in just over two hours.

The very cold temperatures at the top meant they didn’t hang around for long. Unfortunately, there were no views at all due to the mist, but they took lots of photos to show they'd made it.

Sharon had carried up a precious cargo of rose petals with 263 babies’ names. As planned, she released them into the air in memory of all the Twins Trust babies. The petals blew about in the wind before flying into the mist or settling on the ground. It was an emotional moment as everyone remembered their babies.

The climb back down was just as hard as it was incredibly steep in places and hard work for their knees. However, the mood was high.

All of the team finished in similar times, around five hours, which felt like a big accomplishment. They were greeted with Prosecco at the end which was very welcome, along with tea and coffee!

Typically, by this point the sun was out and the skies were blue. However, it did mean that we could sit outside and chat about our amazing experience.

It was an amazing day, coming together with other Babyloss charities to climb Snowdon together.

Two additional people will be tackling Snowdon in September after deferring their places. We wish them luck and hope they have a great time too.

Overall, the team has raised almost £7,000 and donations are still coming in. Thank you so much. This will make such a difference to our bereavement group.

If you’d like to donate, please go to our fundraising page: https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/TwinsTrustSnowdon