Little Jack climbs five highest peaks

Newly-wed parents Gillian and Phil Boocock took their baby son Jack on their honeymoon - a 10-day adventure climbing the biggest mountains in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

“Phil was in-charge of coming up with the idea for the honeymoon. When he suggested about climbing the five highest peaks in the British Isles I was a little unsure at the start, but I thought we should give it a go,” Gillian explained.

The couple, who got married at the end of July, thought that it would be too long to go away without Jack, so decided to take him with them.

“My dad gave us a baby carrier and we did a couple of trips up to Carnmoney Hill and the Cavehill with Jack to get some practice in,” Gillian continued.

The family were away for 10 days, with five full days being spent climbing.

“We were away for 10 days in total, with a lot of the time being used for travelling,” Gillian explained. “We started at Carraunthil in Ireland, before getting the boat over to Wales and climbing Snowdon. We then went to Scafell Pike in England, before taking on Ben Nevis in Scotland. The last leg of our journey took us to Slieve Donard, where we were joined by my dad.”

Gillian revealed that completing the challenge with Jack was the highlight of the trip.

“I was just so pleased that we were able to bring Jack away with us and that we completed all five peaks with him. On the last day on Slieve Donard we had a sign saying ‘Jack’s five peak challenge.’ People were stopping for photos with us and remarking how they had not seen babies as young as Jack on the mountain before,” she said.

Some parts of the trip were tough, but Gillian would recommend the same trip to other parents with young babies.

“At times visibility was poor, and the weather wasn’t too good, but we kept Jack warm and he was really well behaved.

“From the top of Snowdon, Scafell Pike and Ben Nevis we could not really see much, but it was still enjoyable. As long as you have a decent level of fitness and enjoy walking, I would recommend the same trip to other parents with babies.

“Phil and myself are really proud of Jack. He experienced some really harsh weather conditions, but was so well behaved,” Gillian added.