Julie is smiling while wearing sunglasses and a white Evelina London Children’s Charity T-shirt, sitting on a section of the Great Wall of China. The wall stretches behind her through greenery.

Julie’s incredible Great Wall of China Trek

In October 2025, Julie took on the challenge of trekking The Great Wall of China and raised over £1,600 for Evelina London Children’s Charity.

Why Evelina London holds a special place for Julie

A regular hiker, Julie was inspired by the care given to her daughter and many in her community to support Evelina London Children’s Hospital with her latest challenge.

Julie says, “Once I started sharing my story, I had a lot of messages from people saying that the Evelina had also helped their child, with everyone saying what an amazing place it is.”

Julie’s own daughter, Lucie, is 10 years old and has been cared for at Evelina London since before the age of two. She has eczema, asthma, and allergies which require specialist monitoring and care. “She was constantly in and out of hospital…and I’m still so thankful for the help they gave my little girl,” Julie explains.

More recently, a good friend of Julie’s is spending time at Evelina London with her son who has complex health issues. Julie shares, “I saw my friend struggling with her baby and I wanted to do something. I asked her what charity or support group had helped her the most, and she said it was the Evelina. They operated on her little boy and continue to support the family with his health.”.

"Whenever I take on a challenge, I pick a charity depending on what’s going on in my life at the time. This year, it was all about doing something to support my friend. It was a bonus that the Evelina have also helped my Lucie so much.”

Julie, Lucie's mum

Hikers are climbing up The Great Wall of China with backpacks. The wall is surrounded by green shrubbery.

A part of The Great Wall of China

Julie’s first international extreme trek

Julie regularly takes part in extreme endurance challenges, but this was the first one to take her overseas to fulfil a lifelong goal. “I’m Chinese and wanted to see the country for myself. I had heard so much, and it was amazing to learn the culture and the history of the wall and the stories behind it.”

As well as learning about the country, the challenge itself was different to Julie’s expectations. “We knew we’d be doing about 7km of wall per day, but I didn’t know that there was an uphill trek through jungle to get to the wall in the first place! … It was like rock climbing in some places but once you’re there you can’t turn back, and you don’t want to because it’s also so exciting. The views, and the stories, and the idea that it was built by hand all those years ago. It makes it all worth it.”

Overall, the trek took 5 days and covered 45 kilometres, or 28 miles.

Three women are pictured in front of The Great Wall of China, in the middle is Julie wearing sunglasses and white t-shirt that reads Evelina Children

Julie (in the middle) with her two friends at The Great Wall of China

Julie shares tips if you're thinking of taking on your own challenge

Julie’s group, which was made up of her three friends and other travellers they didn’t know, were accompanied by an experienced trek master from China and a trek leader from the UK.

“They sort out all your travel, accommodation, and itinerary for the week. In an unfamiliar country, especially for the first time, you want to be able to focus on the challenge and know that everything else is sorted.”

When it comes to fundraising, Julie’s advice is to keep going as close to the challenge as you can and carry on afterwards.

Do your own fundraising

“People are more inclined when the challenge gets nearer, so don’t stop sharing it and make sure you have photos to share afterwards, or during if you can. People love to see the results of what they’ve sponsored you for.”

Julie, Lucie's mum

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