A TYNEDALE woman is among a group of bikers attempting to become the first ever all-female group to ride to Everest base camp.

Julie Charlton, who lives near West Woodburn, will set off from Kathmandu on September 13, alongside riders from all over the globe.

The group will be led by Steph Jeavons, the first Briton to circumnavigate the globe and ride a motorbike on all seven continents.

Julie said: “There’s 20 women like me, middle aged with no experience of adventure riding, from all over the world.

“It’s a nice group; we’re all in a similar situation.

“The ride is quite challenging, it’s quite an epic trip. It’s very mountainous riding.

“We’ll be going up to 5,000 metres so altitude sickness is a possibility. We’re going to have a support truck with us.”

What’s even more remarkable is that Julie has only been riding a motorbike for three years.

The 53-year-old has been training by riding around the North Tyne and Redesdale.

Julie continued: “I only got my licence three years ago and I haven’t ridden that much because I work full time.

“I went to Norway last year and that got me the adventure bug.

“Motorbiking is interesting. There’s so many tribes you can belong to, and I want adventure riding to be my tribe.

“I want to do a big trip round the world one day, but with limited time this is the most I can do at the moment.”

While the trip is not a charity challenge, Julie is raising money for New Futures Nepal.

The charity supports disadvantaged children and adults of Nepal by raising funds for initiatives that promote health, education and independence and supports social integration for children with disabilities to live in the community.

Donations can be made at www.justgiving.com/fundraising/julie-charlton14.