Students are heading for top of the world

3:49pm Saturday 3rd November 2007

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TWO students from Weymouth's Budmouth Technology could be among an expedition party to India in 2008.

The trip, which is being led by Budmouth vice-principal John Hegarty, will include Harrison Murphy, 16, and Elliott Loveless if they can each raise the £2,000 sponsorship required to go.

Fifteen-year-old Harrison, of West Street, Chickerell, said he was chosen to go on the expedition with other youngsters from across the region after a challenging selection weekend in Wales.

He added: "On July 20 I am hoping to fly out from London to New Delhi and then onwards across the Himalayas to Leh, the highest airfield in the world and the capital of Ladakh.

"It is the coldest and highest inhabited place on Earth with less rainfall than the Sahara Desert.

"We have four objectives on the trip. They are to raft the headwaters of the Indus river, to trek across the Moonlands of the Tibetan Plateau, to mountain bike several high altitude routes to the Chinese border and to complete a crossing of the greater Himalaya."

Harrison, who has been an Echo delivery boy in Chickerell for two years, is hoping people will sponsor him for what he said would be the potential trip of a lifetime'.

Mr Hegarty said: "It is what we call an exposed trip because they will be unsupported for quite a time.

"Each section they tackle will last about a week and they will only have a very short period of time between each one to recover.

"This sort of trip is extremely useful for teaching young people about leadership, teamwork and other skills."

Anyone who would like to sponsor Harrison can do so by contacting him on 01305 775809.