A Cullingworth fundraiser had to put her nursing skills to good use during a trek across Kenya.

Rachel Hopkins has returned from a once in a lifetime walk across the African country, which proved to have both highs and lows.

The 36-year-old, who is a project manager for Bradford District Care Trust, says: "It was a great experience but most days it was 38C in the shade and 50C in the sun.

"Quite a lot of people fell ill with vomiting and diarrhoea throughout the week and I got it at the end of the week and missed the gala dinner.

"About half of the people had to drop out and it was a good test for my nursing skills.

"Having said that, the sense of achievement was fantastic, particularly towards the end of the trek when we climbed 9,500ft.

"There were some superb people on the trek and I would like to go back to Kenya."

Rachel raised £2,500 for the mental health charity MIND on the 80km walk through the Rift Valley.

One of her main reasons for going on the expedition was to see lions in their natural habitat, but the king of animals was conspicuous by his absence. "Unfortunately we didn't see many big cats, but we did see leopards and both white and black rhinos," adds Rachel.