Four men from Llanidloes have completed a 100km walk to mark the centenary of the end of the First World War, raising over £1,000 for charity.

Paul Jones, Paul Avery, John Dunkley and Carl Pugh decided to take on the ABF 100km challenge, a 62-mile walk in one go, visiting cenotaphs along the way.

ABF (formerly the Army Benevolent Fund) is The Soldiers’ Charity.

The group received free train travel from Caersws to Chirk courtesy of Transport for Wales as they set off for the walk in aid of ABF.

Once in Chirk they made their way to the town’s cenotaph, where a small cross of remembrance was laid at the foot of the cenotaph.

The idea for the walk had been mentioned to veteran Paul Jones by Trudy Davies of Llanidloes Royal British Legion’s ladies branch.

The ABF had asked for volunteers from across the globe to walk 100km during October as part of a virtual front-line walk.

Paul didn’t need to be asked twice and put a call out to his friends to see who wanted to join him on the walk.

John Dunkley quickly accepted the challenge along with Paul Avery of Llanidloes and Carl Pugh from the Elan Valley, who are both military veterans.

Chirk was chosen as a convenient town to start from due to rail connections and suitably placed for a 100km route to be mapped back to Llanidloes.

Once out of Chirk the four men, who named themselves the Frontline Four, picked up the Offa’s Dyke footpath and headed south.

They walked non-stop, only pausing to lay further crosses of remembrance at the cenotaphs of Trefonen, Llanymynech and Four Crosses before heading westwards towards Welshpool.

See this week’s Machynlleth & Llanidloes paper for the full story, available in shops and as a digital edition now