Blazing a trail - the history of Trailwalker

Trailwalker began in Hong Kong in 1981. The Queen’s Gurkha Signals Regiment, based there at the time, began using the Maclehose Trail, a 100km-long trail from coast to coast, as a training exercise to test stamina and teamwork. The event was quickly adapted to raise funds for the Gurkha Welfare Trust.

In 1986, the Queen's Gurkha Signals invited Oxfam Hong Kong to partner them on the event – a highly-successful collaboration that lasted ten years. In 1997, when the UK returned Hong Kong to the People's Republic of China, the Queen's Gurkha Signals were re-deployed to the UK, where they quickly established Trailwalker on the South Downs Way. The first event was a test run, and the following year, the event was opened to the public. By 2000, the UK event had become the nation's largest ultra-distance marathon.

In 2002, the Queen's Gurkha Signals invited Oxfam GB to re-create the successful partnership achieved with Oxfam in Hong Kong. Once again, the Gurkha's logistical skills combined with Oxfam's marketing experience to achieve great results for the two charities.

Meanwhile, Oxfam Australia had already begun developing their own Trailwalker event. In 1998, Oxfam Australia launched Trailwalker Sydney, and within two years it became their top fundraising event. A second event was developed in Adelaide and quickly grew to capacity, so in 2002, it was replaced by Trailwalker Melbourne.

Trailwalker is now Oxfam's top fundraising event in Australia, the UK, and Hong Kong, and Oxfam Japan held its first Trailwalker in May 2007. Oxfam Belgium begins their Trailwalker adventure this year.

Take up the Challenge

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