Two groups of walkers from the Isle of Man completed the UK Three Peaks Challenge on the same weekend, collectively raising thousands of pounds for their respective charities.

Six firemen from Ramsey firestation were walking in aid of The Fire Fighters’ Charity while a group of eight colleagues from The Buchan School and King William’s College raised more than £2,000 for Rebecca House and Manx Cancer Help.

The firemen, and two drivers, travelled to the UK to scale the three highest peaks of England, Scotland and Wales, all in just 21 hours and 40 minutes.

To date they have raised more than £1,250 with money still coming in. The charity supports firefighters who have suffered physical or mental injuries in their line of work.

Fireman Richard Watson said: ’This marks the 50th Fire Fighters’ Charity Three Peaks Challenge in 25 years and is likely to be the last, so we are very lucky to be a part of it.

’It was a gruelling 24 hours, taking on 20 miles on foot, 10,000 feet in height and 500 miles of driving, but well worth it to raise funds for such a deserving charity.

’We would like to say thank you to the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company for its kind sponsorship of our ferry travel.’

The six-man team started in Scotland, climbing Ben Nevis, the highest of the three mountains, in the sweltering evening sun.

Once complete, they made the six-hour overnight drive to Cumbria to tackle Scafell Pike, followed by another lengthy drive to Wales for the final climb, Snowdon.

Alan Macnair, head of ICT at the Buchan School, praised his team.

’I am so pleased with our team’s efforts, successfully ascending all three peaks,’ he said.

’Packing in 500 miles of driving (in a minibus) and climbing three mountains in under 24 hours was certainly no walk in the park.

’The heat was a challenge and something we hadn’t planned for, but it’s an experience we will never forget and I’m delighted we can pledge more than £2,000 to two fantastic local charities.

’Credit to our drivers Sean and Louise: there were some small, winding roads to navigate.’