North Devon boy to complete 180-mile charity challenge this Sunday

A North Devon teenager is about to complete a year-long challenge to run and hike all 180 miles of the Tarka Trail for charity.

Arthur Belford, now aged 13, took on the challenge 12 months ago to raise money and awareness for children’s mental health charity Place2Be.

This Sunday (September 20), Arthur – who lives near Holsworthy – will complete the final stretch from Barnstaple to Instow, returning to the place where he began his challenge almost exactly a year ago.

He is setting off from Barnstaple at 10.30am and would love to see as many people as possible turn out to send him off or cheer him along the way.

The route in the past year has taken Arthur through some of Devon’s most beautiful – and challenging – countryside, following rivers and woodland trails, crossing Exmoor and taking in the North Devon coastline.

Along the way he has faced winter storms, freezing temperatures, summer heat, mud, steep climbs, the occasional wrong turn – and more encounters with cows than he would have liked!

The Shebbear College pupils and rugby player for Okehampton RFC came up with the idea because he wanted to set himself a big outdoor challenge while doing something to help other children.

He chose Place2Be, which provides support through schools, working directly with children and young people as well as supporting teachers, school staff and families to recognise when a child may be struggling and help them get the support they need.

Arthur said: “I’m really lucky because I have lots of people I can talk to if something is wrong, at home and at school. But I know not every child has that.

“I think every child should have someone they can talk to when life feels difficult. That’s why I wanted to raise money for Place2Be and get more people talking about children’s mental health.”

Since setting off from Instow last September, Arthur has spent the past 12 months running and hiking his way around the Tarka Trail, tackling it one section at a time and fitting the challenge around school, rugby and family life.

Some sections have been perfect for running; others have meant hours of tough hiking. One of the hardest days saw Arthur cover almost 20km from Lynmouth across Exmoor to Lew Combe.

Friends and family have joined him for different stages and Arthur has been sharing the journey on Instagram at @arthurrunstarkatrail, documenting both the highs and the harder moments of the challenge.

During Children’s Mental Health Week, Shebbear College held fundraising activities for Place2Be linked to Arthur’s challenge, while local businesses including Slee Blackwell Solicitors have supported individual stages.

Arthur originally set himself a fundraising target of £800. After reaching it, he increased his target to £2,500 and is now at almost £2,000.

He said: “I hope doing the challenge gets more people talking about children’s mental health and how important it is to have someone to talk to.

“It feels really strange that we’re nearly finished because we’ve been doing it for a whole year.

“There have definitely been some hard bits, but there have been loads of really good days too, especially when my friends and family have joined me.

“I’m really excited about getting back to Instow. Finishing where we started is going to feel pretty special.”

You can follow Arthur’s journey on Instagram at @arthurrunstarkatrail and if you would like to donate to Place2Be, please go to his JustGiving page at https://www.justgiving.com/page/arthur-tarka-trail-run