THEY were blasted by rain, hail and wind – and one woman sank up to her neck in a bog – but it was worth it.

Intrepid walkers who took on Yorkshire’s Three Peaks in a storm have raised almost £7,000 so far to help paralysed York mother Debbie Plowman.

One of the walk’s organisers, Lyndsay Snodgrass, said they encountered “horrendous” weather, with horizontal rain and hail, and gale force winds, and only 25 out of the 38 people who started the walk completed it last weekend. “Those that didn’t finish were either injured or just let down by their waterproof clothes,” she said.

“I pulled out at the half-way point, as I was soaked to my skin and had run out of dry clothes. Two girls, not walking with us, had to be airlifted off Ingleborough with hypothermia.

“There were some amazing displays of courage and determination. We had one woman, Jen Winterschladen, fall neck deep into a bog and she still managed to finish!

“A couple of others literally hobbled to the finish line and some were in tears when they reached the final peak. I am immensely proud of everyone whether they finished or not.”

The money will go towards the Debbie Plowman Happy Faces Trust, which aims to buy vital equipment for mother-of-two Debbie, of Haxby, who broke her neck, severely damaging her spinal cord, when she fell on her head during a pole-dancing exercise in a York studio in December 2009. Other beneficiaries are Spinal Research UK, the Lascelles unit at Harrogate and Osborn Spinal Unit at Sheffield Northern General.

Two more fundraising events have also been announced. A pamper evening is being organised by Debbie’s pole dance instructor, Nanette Cottle, on June 12, from 6pm to 9pm at The Royal York Hotel Events Centre, with tickets costing £5 to include goodie bag and raffle ticket.

There will be beauty stalls offering various treatments at slightly cheaper rates along with jewellery, cakes, chocolate and gifts, a lingerie catwalk show from Elizabeth Wells Lingerie and a pole showcase featuring a professional pole dance fitness expert. Anyone wanting a ticket should phone Nanette on 07903090535, email nanandkids@hotmail.co.uk or pay on the door.

Meanwhile, staff at Little Acorns Day Nursery at New Earswick, which used to be attended by Debbie’s children, are planning to do an 11-mile walk around Goathland on Saturday, September 10.