INTREPID Tony Concannon has been pounding the hills around Clent and Kinver in preparation for a charity walk which will take him to Northern Spain next month.

He will be trekking the Camino de Santiago to raise funds for Our Lady's Hospice in Dublin where his eldest daughter Aife was looked after before she finally lost an eight-year battle with a brain tumour.

Tony, aged 63, will be accompanied on the ten-day trek by his youngest daughter Nysha and they plan to tackle a 200K route of the trail, a UNESCO world heritage site which is popular with pilgrims, starting on Monday June 1.

The pair have little experience of walking, but are determined to complete the task.

Tony said: "When you tell people you're walking in Spain, they assume you'll have nice weather. But they have a lot of torrential rain in that region of Spain and we expect to find the walk quite challenging."

Tony, of Huntsman Drive, Kinver, is clinic director of the Creative Health Centre in Brierley Hill High Street, which will be staging a complimentary treatment day next Wednesday May 27 - providing taster sessions and treatments in acupuncture, Reiki, relaxation massage, reflexology and sports massage in return for donations to the hospice.

Tony said: "Aife was a very keen walker and we used to go for walks together when she was ill.

"I was trawling through some magazines and I came across the Camino trail and we talked about doing it.

"After Aife's death last year, I spoke with Nysha, who is 32 and now lives in France, and we said we must do the walk in memory of Aife.

"Nysha's not a walker and is more used to wearing high heels, but she has been practising very hard. She's very determined and has a strong tenacity to succeed.

"We will be attempting to cover between 20 to 30K each day and I will be taking my needles with me to treat anyone who may need them."