A FORMER Wivenhoe mayor has raised thousands of pounds for charity on a trek in Nepal.

Town councillor Robert Needham, 72, found himself thousands of feet up in the Himalayas on the trip, in aid of the Essex Air Ambulance.

Mr Needham, of Feedhams Close, Wivenhoe, tackled high mountain passes and forests and saw glaciers during the ten-day expedition.

He said: “It was a fantastic trip.

“The most inspiring day was when we got up at 4.30am and climbed Poon Hill.

“The summit was at just over 3,200 metres, so it was hard work because of the lack of oxygen.

“I was stopping every step to get my breath back. But once we were there, I got a big sense of achievement.

“The whole thing was magnificent when the sun came up over Annapurna.”

This was the third time Mr Needham had trekked for charity.

In 2007, he travelled to northern India to walk in another part of the Himalayan range in 2007 and four years before that, he walked the Great Wall of China.

Overall, his group of 26 intrepid walkers raised more than £40,000 for the Essex and Herts Air Ambulance Trust on the most recent trip.