TWO adrenalin junkies' from Trafford took on the biggest challenge of their lives earlier this month when they climbed Mount Kilimanjaro to raise money for the charity Whizz-Kidz.

Craige Barker, 42, an IT project manager from Sale, and Brian Dutton, 35, a fitness instructor from Timperley, helped raise over £3,000 each for the UK based charity, which aims to improve the quality of life of disabled children through the provision of mobility equipment.

Brian said: "We did it for the challenge and helping a charity along the way is just a bonus, especially one that helps disabled children."

Climbing the tallest freestanding mountain rise in the world the pair faced extreme conditions, as they had to contend with the worst weather the area had seen for 10 years.

Craige told SAM: "We faced torrential rain for the first few days and as we ascended higher we had to cope with blizzards and ice as temperatures plunged to minus twenty degrees."

Brian added: "It was really cold the; conditions were awful it was physically challenging but that makes it all the more worthwhile."

They also had to cope with lack of sleep and altitude sickness, Craige added: "There were times when I felt like giving up but what got me through was thinking about seeing my family and thinking I've got to finish this - I've got to get to the top!"

On reaching the summit a staggering 5,895 metres Craige said: "It was so emotional, to have gone through all this pain and suffering, the views were amazing." Brian added: "It was quite an inspirational thing to do, everyone was elated hugging each other"

You can donate money to Whizz Kidz at www.kili-06.co.uk