Leeds duo set to throw support behind mental health charity Andy's Man Club with Alfred Wainwright's Coast to Coast Walk

Ryan Morris, 29, and Conor Walker, 28, are planning to take on the renowned Wainwright’s Coast to Coast Walk devised by author Arthur Wainwright, starting at St Bees and ending at Robin Hood’s Bay. They are tackling the 190-mile walk to raise funds and awareness for Andy’s Man Club, a charity offering free weekly support groups for men above the age of 18.

Both Ryan and Conor feel passionately about the work done by the charity, which has grown at a rapid rate since its inception. Such is their commitment to raising funds for the charity, they are both getting Andy’s Man Club tattoos upon completion of the challenge.

"Men have problems speaking about their feelings,” Ryan told the Yorkshire Evening Post. “Andy's Man Club does need funding, but it's for awareness too.

"The person who helped start it, Luke Ambler, lost his brother-in-law Andy. They started doing it every Monday night in Leeds, they made it a place where men could come together and talk. They had an aim to get more towns doing the same thing and now it’s got big. There are loads of towns doing it every Monday. It's free to go to and it’s for everyone.”

Andy’s Man Club has three meeting locations in Leeds – Milford Sports Club, Leeds College of Building and Vale Circles. Ryan and Conor anticipate the challenge will take nine days to complete. The walk will be tackled in April and they are hoping the weather is kind to them as they are planning to camp for the duration of the challenge.

“We're getting the train up to Saint Bees on April 1 and then we'll start early on April 2,” Ryan explained. “We are keen walkers so I hope we get it done in nine days. It depends on the weather and a lot of stuff but we should get it done in nine days. We're camping, we said if we have some rough nights or rough days because of the rain then we can book into a hostel or somewhere like that but we are aiming to camp the whole thing.

"It goes from Saint Bees on the West Coast in the Lake District and goes all the way to Robin Hood Bay on the East Coast. Loads of different people do the coast-to-coast but Wainwright was the first and it's actually going to be his route that we are following. We're going to be going up where Wainwright's ashes are sprinkled.”

The walk passes through three national parks and was officially announced as a National Trail last year. In 2004, it was ranked the second best walk in the world by a panel of walking experts.

Ryan’s employers JT Atkinson Builders Mercchant have supported the challenge, offering to provide kit to wear and helping with fundraising. Members of staff from the company’s various branches will also be joining in for legs of the walk. Conor’s employers, Forterra, have also committed to matching donations totalling up to £500. Also accompanying the duo on the walk will be Ryan’s dog Alfie and Conor’s dog Benji.

“We're going to get volunteers from each branch to do parts of the walk with us, with the T-shirts and bands that Andy's Man Club have sent out,” Ryan said. “It's going to be all over their social media on that side of the country.”

More information about Andy’s Man Club can be found on the charity’s official website, which features a map with the locations of each of the groups. The meetings are held every Monday at 7pm. Ryan and Conor are taking donations for their challenge via JustGiving.