Arctic trek left Barrhead dad David totally chilled out

And, if you are Barrhead dad David Courtenay, that includes a 50-mile charity trek across the Arctic Circle.

With his three-year-old son Adam providing inspiration every step of the way, David completed the gruelling challenge last week.

He was joined by friends Ryan and Nikki Watt on the three-day expedition as they raised funds for the Glasgow Children’s Hospital Charity.

It is a cause close to 37-year-old David’s heart, as staff there have looked after Adam, who was diagnosed with a rare and life-limiting brain condition called Bilateral Sturge-Weber Syndrome that causes him to suffer up to 10 epileptic seizures a day.

Louise and David with brave tot Adam

The tot was born with a port wine stain birthmark covering his head and face, which has resulted in an extra layer of blood vessels over his brain.

This means his brain cannot develop in the way it can for others, due to a lack of blood and oxygen.

Despite his difficulties, Adam has amazed proud parents David and Louise and his two sisters, Emma and Tegan, with his determination.

Sturge-Weber Syndrome is a rare condition that affects one in every 50,000 babies and there are three different types.

There are children who can walk, talk and go to school but, unfortunately for Adam, he has it on both sides of his brain and, because of the severity of his condition, it is life-limiting.

David signed up to walk the Arctic Circle last year with Ryan, 34, and Nikki, 38, and they organised a number of fundraising nights to coin in cash for the charity.

They were joined on the trek by 23-year-old Calum Sanderson, who was also raising cash for the Glasgow Children’s Hospital Charity.

Even reaching their remote destination for the trek proved to be something of a challenge.

“We flew to Helsinki, then took another flight to a town in the north of Finland called Rovaniemi, which sits right on the border of the Arctic Circle,” said David.

“We had a four-hour safety briefing that covered the ‘do’s and don’ts’ and a kit check to make sure everything we had would be suitable for the temperatures.

“We then went out for the day, to get used to the temperatures.”

Hot water thrown by Ryan into the bone-chilling Arctic air immediately evaporated

The group were part of a larger team of trekkers who, accompanied by six guides, faced bone-chilling conditions, with temperatures plummeting to minus-29 degrees Celsius.

David added: “The first day, we set off at 8am. We walked down to a frozen river and walked along that, which was a distance of 28 kilometres.

“We set up camp and, that night, the temperature dropped down to minus-29, which was the coldest point of the whole trek.

“It was so cold that, during the night, we had to put our boots and jackets in our sleeping bags to prevent them from freezing.

“And when we were sleeping, our breath was turning to moisture in the tent, then it turned to frost.

“We were lucky enough to see the Northern Lights, though. That was spectacular.”

Being able to see the Northern Lights was a memorable experience

Day two of the trek involved a route with more hills and deeper snow.

“It made the walking a bit tougher,” said David. “Luckily, that night wasn’t as cold, as they reckon it was about minus-21. It’s amazing what a difference those eight degrees make.

“On our last day trekking, we had a little fun as we threw boiling hot water up into the air and watched it turn instantly to a cloud because it was so cold.

“I would say this was the easiest day for walking, especially as some parts were downhill, so we got to jump onto our sledges and slide down, which was good fun.

“On the back of my sledge, I had Adam’s toy monkey and, if any of us were struggling, we just looked down at that to keep us going.”

David took one of Adam’s cuddly toys with him to provide some inspiration

That sense of determination was good news for  the Glasgow Children’s Hospital Charity, with the friends raising more than £16,000 for the worthy cause, smashing their target of £12,000.

Bosses at the charity have pledged that every penny raised by David and his colleagues will be put to good use.

William McGowan, head of fundraising at the Glasgow Children’s Hospital Charity, said: “We would like to congratulate David for his remarkable fundraising efforts.

“We rely on our generous fundraisers and donors to help us fund the latest medical equipment and research, vital family support services and innovative hospital play programmes to give young patients and their families the extra special care they deserve in hospital.

“This is only made possible thanks to inspiring supporters like David, so we would like to share our heartfelt thanks with him for his continued support.”

Despite the tough conditions, David will be able to look back on his Arctic adventure with great memories.

“I’m really glad that we did it,” he said. “I got asked the other day if I’d go back and I had also asked Nikki and Ryan and we all said ‘yes.’

“It was a brilliant experience and I would definitely recommend it for anyone to do. It completely takes you out of your comfort zone, like nothing you’ll have ever done before.”