Two long time friends are set to climb Mount Kilimanjaro this month to raise important funds for Exmouth RNLI.

Adventurers Darren Strode and Andy Beake, both from Exmouth, will be donning their climbing boots and flying off to Tanzania on 14 January to ascend Mount Kilimanjaro in order to raise much needed funds for the local RNLI, the charity that saves lives at sea.

Their expedition, scheduled to start on 17 January, is expected to take the pair seven hard and difficult days of climbing to conquer the 5895 metre (19,341 feet) summit of the highest free standing mountain in the world.

Darren, a sales manager, said: "Andy and I live in Exmouth and both ourselves, family and friends all use the beach and water sports activities. We set our sights on climbing Mount Kilimanjaro this year and thought what better way to use the opportunity than to help raise funds for our local RNLI lifesavers."

Andy, a police officer in the Avon & Somerset Police, said: "We've been good friends for a long time and living so close to the coast fully appreciate the fact that in Exmouth RNLI we have a group of volunteers who give up their time and are prepared to put themselves at risk to save people in difficulty at sea. We've always wanted to climb Kilimanjaro and to do so whilst raising funds for this important charity makes it all the more worthwhile."

Des White, Chair of Exmouth RNLI Fundraising Team, said: "We've had some extraordinary individuals take on some incredible feats to raise funds for Exmouth RNLI in the past, but I think this one probably tops them all. On behalf of all our volunteers at Exmouth RNLI, I'd like to say a big thank you to Darren and Andy for raising funds for us - we will all be watching their progress keenly and wish them all the very best in their quest to reach the summit."

If you would like to support Darren and Andy and help them raise funds for Exmouth RNLI, you can click here.