Tortoise trek for Galapagos trip

The Galapagos Islands are home to the largest living tortoise

An adventurous traveller from Tyneside is taking life in the slow lane as she sets about raising money for the trip of a lifetime.

Katy Pickering is going to dress up as a tortoise for a sponsored walk on Sunday to raise cash for her trek to the Galapagos Islands.

She is visiting the in the islands in the Pacific Ocean, off the coast of South America, to help children and babies with special needs.

The 22-year-old will be walking from the Millennium Bridge in Newcastle to the coast at Tynemouth Pier in a 4ft by 3ft papier-maché shell.

She is selling space for sponsors' names and logos, which will be pinned to her shell as she makes her way on her journey.

The Galapagos Islands are home to the largest living tortoise in the world.

Bin cleaning

The university graduate hopes to fly out to the islands in September.

Ms Pickering, of Benton, Newcastle, said: "I need to raise around £5,000 and hopefully the trek will contribute towards this total.

"The costume will give me the chance to publicly thank those who have helped me along the way."

In addition to the tortoise trek, Katy also plans to clean wheeled-bins in her neighbourhood in order to raise added cash.

Ms Pickering recently graduated from the University of Leeds and hopes for a career in the charity sector.

She has completed a gold Duke of Edinburgh Award, which included trekking in the Andes and volunteering in an orphanage in Bolivia.