In a fundraiser of gruelling proportions Marcus Thornton plans to walk from his home in Port St Mary to the Chasms car park 56 times in 56 days.

It’s not a random number. It is equal to walking to the summit of Everest.

’At New Year I wandered up to Cregneash one day and had an idea. I wondered how far it was above sea level,’ he said.

’It is 158m above sea level which is when multiplied by 56 the summit of Everest, at 8,848m.’

He made it a New Year’s resolution to complete the challenge of walking from Athol Street up the slope by Happy Valley and the Howe to Cregneash and the Chasms car park and back again and raise funds for Craig’s Heartstrong Foundation at the same time.

He said that heart health was of particular personal importance to him because he his father Lawson died from a heart attack at the age of 61, five years ago.

Also, Marcus has lost a great deal of weight recently - down from 19 to 16 stone - and is keen to keep going. He works for Manx National Heritage and aims to do one circuit before he leaves for work, meaning setting off at 5am.

The hardest part will be getting up, he said. On days off he might manage two circuits in one day, though that might be a little ambitious he admitted.

’I’m not an athlete,’ he said.

’I was very much overweight and this is a way of losing pounds.’

The 49-year-old wants to start the challenge on March 1 and complete it by his birthday in May.

Local support will spur him on. ’If anybody sees me it would be great if they told me to carry on,’ he said.

’I’d like to get support around the village. It’s very easy to give up on these things.’

To fund Marcus see www.justgiving.com/fundraising/marcus-thornton3