6 year-old boy climbing 12th mountain in aid of poorly children
Ben Nevis will be Oscar Burrow's final hike
Last updated 27th May 2023
A six-year-old who went viral for attempting to climb 12 of the highest mountains in the UK to help "poorly children to go on holiday" is to take on his final hike.
Oscar Burrow from Lancaster plans to summit Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in Scotland, on Monday, alongside family members and his friend Ollie Perkins - which marks the 70th anniversary of the first successful ascent of Everest.
Over the course of nine months, Oscar has reached the top of Snowdon, the highest mountain in Wales, and Scafell Pike, the highest in England.
He drew inspiration from a video he saw of Sir Edmund Hillary climbing Mount Everest at school, which prompted him to say: "I want to be the youngest person to climb Mount Everest."
In a bid to satisfy his son's ambition, Mr Burrow, 38, a project manager in the NHS, thought: "Why don't we start Oscar on this journey by picking 12 UK mountains that if you added them all up from where you start to where you finish on every mountain would be of a similar height to that of Everest?"
Oscar has gone on to raise more than ÂŁ30,000 for Derian House Children's Hospice, in Chorley, and as he prepares to ascend Ben Nevis, he said he is most looking forward to camping from Saturday to Wednesday, as a newbie to the activity.
"I want to make a fire using rocks," he told the PA news agency.
"It's my first time in a tent and I get to be sleeping outdoors."
He added: "It's the biggest mountain in the UK and there might be snow on the top."
The youngster has visited the Chorley-based hospice several times and due to his heroic efforts, Oscar was given a gold badge by staff.
"I got a very special badge and I want to take it to school," he added.
Mr Burrow explained that when Oscar first visited Derian House, he was shown its facilities, including a swimming pool which has been heated to a specific temperature to make the children more comfortable and kept super clean to reduce the chance of infection.
As a keen swimmer himself, the six-year-old wanted others to be able to swim.
"The money from this phase of the challenge will go towards helping the staff there run the swimming pool, equipment and also paying for children to have lessons and adolescents to stay at the hospice", Mr Burrow added.
Mr Burrow said that at the start, instead of looking at the fundraising figures as money, Oscar views each thousand pounds raised as being a holiday for a child in need, with ÂŁ30,000 equating to 30 children being able to "go on holiday".
Oscar's mountaineering journey has been filled with humorous, enjoyable and challenging moments, including a time when he thought he might get "blown away".
"(When I did Helvellyn in the Lake District), I almost blew off and grandad and daddy had to hold onto me", he said.
He liked climbing Glyder Fawr, in Snowdonia, because "it was really steep and you have to climb up sections with your hands".
He added that he found climbing Cairn Gorm, in Scotland, the "hardest" because of the deep snow.
"We made a giant snowball bigger than me and rolled it down the hill," Oscar added.
Oscar's JustGiving page can be found here: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/oscar-burrow1?fbclid=IwAR2XJQg2J2-8zvOyc5XN5hKkenlpZ-G7tbiswedRgxZv3-OKuCFdCGFv4pA
Oscar's journey can also be followed along via his Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100088803157394