Man from Sheffield begins 500-mile trek across Scotland as he raises money for mental health charity Mind

Jordan Darby has spent years tackling his own mental health struggles, only to find one simple act helps more than anything else - walking.

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The 38-year-old is now a prolific walker, taking on multiple massive treks and covering 600 miles on his feet in January alone.

But his current challenge may be his biggest yet, as he has begun a journey that will see him cover around 500 miles, with Jordan tackling on average around 25 miles a day over 20 days along the north coast of Scotland.

And to make this journey even more worthwhile, he’s using it as an opportunity to raise money for mental health charity Mind.

Jordan began his walk this morning (June 1), and had already raised close to £1,500 before taking his first step.

He told The Star: “Basically I struggled with my mental health, but got into walking about two years ago.

“I saw a lot of places along this route that I liked and thought what better way to see it all other than walking.

“You can go in your car, but you can’t stop every mile to see everything.

“Then since I was thinking about doing it, I thought why not make it for charity?”

It’s not the first charitable cause Jordan’s supported, having been on sponsored walks before and even taking on a skydive.

And while he felt pretty confident when boarding the train up north, the realisation of what he’s about to take on sunk in as he made his way to Scotland.

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“I was feeling pretty good but my nerves have kicked in,” he added.

“It’s the camping more than anything, I’ve not done a lot of that before.

“But I should be done in 20 days, hopefully less - I know what I’m like though, I’ll see something and end up putting an extra 10 miles on my journey.

“It just all boils down to my mental health. I found walking helps so now I want to scream from the rooftops about it.”

Those wishing to support Jordan’s fundraiser can do so here.

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