A 53-YEAR-OLD builder aiming to break the record for walking the National Trails around the coasts of England and Wales spoke of his gratitude at receiving “a welcome in the hillsides” during a short stopover in Ceredigion last week.

Devonian Alan Watkins hopes to raise £10,000 by completing the 2,795-mile trek in aid of the County Air Ambulance Trust national charity.

He set off from his home in Plymouth on 23 April and will beat the current record by 27 days if he finishes as planned on 29 October – an achievement he hopes will earn him a place in the Guinness Book of Records.

But Mr Watkins revealed how his record attempt was almost derailed after vandals burnt his £400 tent to the ground in Prestatyn.

On the verge of quitting the challenge, Alan only decided to press on after shocked locals clubbed together to buy him a new tent, sleeping bag and roll mat.

“I didn’t know what to say – I was completely gobsmacked,” he said.

“After the incident, the welcome from the people living along the Welsh coast has been awesome."

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