An all-action vicar is set to raise £4,000 for charity after walking 160 miles in six days.

The Reverend Dennis Ackroyd walked up to 30 miles a day along the Macmillan Way from Boston on the Lincolnshire Coast to the village of Yanworth just outside Cirencester.

He was aided on his trip last month by his wife, Meg, who provided food and drinks from her car, and his 12-year-old dog Wanda - who accompanied him on the last day of the trek.

Mr Ackroyd, 62, of St Luke's Church in Moorbottom, Cleckheaton, said: "I've always been a keen walker so this was a good excuse to raise some money as well.

"The weather was very kind to me and my feet remained in one piece during the walk.

"I try to encourage people to keep fit, it's especially important when you get older and it keeps you out of the doctor's surgery."

Mr Ackroyd said he was bitten by the fitness bug when he was in the army.

He played football and badminton while in the forces and today he regularly works out at a Brighouse gym and plays squash.

Three years ago he walked 400 miles visiting churches where he had worked in the Potteries, Woking near London and Guildford.

And when he retires at 65 he plans to embark on a six-month trek across America - visiting cities along the way. He said: "I've visited almost every major American city because I used to do a lot of work preaching in prisons there.

"Some of the money donated for my Macmillan trip came in the form of dollars from America. But most of the money has come from the people of Cleckheaton, they have been very generous."

So far Mr Ackroyd has collected £3,750 for Macmillan Cancer Relief which provides support for people suffering the disease.

His wife, Meg, said: "He did very well. Each night he said his feet were burning but he had always recovered by morning. He went armed with blister packs just in case."

The Macmillan Way route takes walkers across countryside and tracks from Boston to Abbotsbury near Weymouth on the south coast.

This week, the charity is holding events across the country to mark Macmillan Mile Week, which include sponsored dog walks and line dances.

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