Wellingborough woman takes on challenge of visiting every county trig point to raise awareness for suicide charity

A Wellingborough woman has taken on the mighty task of visiting all 51 of Northamptonshire’s trig points in as many days in support of a UK suicide prevention charity.

Caren Johnston chose Papyrus as the benefactor of her journey as five family members have taken their own lives over the last 20 years.

Caren is keen to raise awareness for what is one of the highest leading causes of death for young adults, and the biggest killer of people aged 35 and under in the UK.

She said: "It’s something I feel needs to have more awareness raised about it.

"It’s a big interest of mine to combine a cause I’m interested in for family reasons along with my hobbies.

“This time of year it’s challenging, weather has been interesting, but I like being outdoors in all kinds of weather so it’s been good fun.

"The awareness is the most important aspect of this for me.”

The use of triangulation stations (or ‘trig points’) on high ground began in the mid-1930s by the Ordnance Survey to map out the exact shape of the country by finding out the angles between each one.

Caren’s journey started on January 1 after visiting the landmark in Bozeat, and she hopes to finish at the trig point in Cold Ashby, as it was the first used for the retriangulation of Great Britain.

So far, 29 across Northamptonshire have been visited and documented.

Caren has battled cold weather and unexpected obstacles, but finds that one in particular may be tough to tick off the list. So far, all of the points have been accessible to the public, but the trig point in Silverstone is within the grounds of the racing circuit, so could pose a problem.

Caren remains hopeful, however, that the challenge will be completed.

Papyrus is a UK-wide charity that is tackling the preventable problem head-on, working with communities across the UK and helping to support and educate people about mental health and suicide prevention for young adults.

Caren insists that, while a JustGiving page has been launched and donations are ‘a bonus’, the effort is more about raising awareness for the worthwhile cause.

You can visit the fundraiser to track her journey and donate here.