Over £56,000 was raised by a group of intrepid Mountbatten Isle of Wight supporters who travelled 240km through Sweden’s snowy wilderness, on the charity’s first ever Lapland Husky Trail Challenge.

Guided by experts from challenge event provider, Global Adventure Challenges, they boarded sleds pulled by husky dogs and camped out under the Northern Lights, as part of their incredible challenge. Raising money for the Isle of Wight’s only hospice, their journey started in Kiruna, in the Arctic Circle, and finished at Sweden's world-famous Ice Hotel, running for a week in late March.

At a recent thank you evening, their fundraising total was revealed — an incredible £56,270.97!

The team-mates’ achievements are helping fund 24/7 end-of-life care on the Isle of Wight, 85 per cent of which is delivered in Islanders’ homes, with the rest through an inpatient unit in Newport and day services in the John Cheverton Centre.

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Watch video: CLICK HERE to watch our thank you video to our Lapland Husky Trail Challenge fundraisers

Read more: See photos and video in our Lapland Husky Trail Challenge blog HERE

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Mountbatten community fundraiser,  Harri McNeil, said: “Travelling through Sweden’s Arctic wilderness was no easy challenge. Our fundraisers faced freezing temperatures, the challenges – and joy – of looking after their huskies, snowdrifts up to their necks and the physical demands of being pulled on sleds. They earned every single penny of the incredible amount raised for Mountbatten Isle of Wight. We are so very grateful. It will help our expert teams continue to deliver vital care to Islanders dealing with death, dying and bereavement.”

Mountbatten Isle of Wight reaches 70 per cent of all deaths on the Isle of Wight, compared to a national hospice average of around 30 per cent.