Celebrities begin Red Nose Desert Trek in Kenya for Comic Relief

Add to My Stories If the assortment of celebrities who volunteered for this year's Comic Relief trek across Kenya thought searing heat and snakes were likely to be their biggest enemy, they probably didn't expect their transport to be quite so nerve-jangling.Arriving in the barren northern reaches of Kenya this weekend, the nine-strong team of stars which includes Olly Murs, Lorraine Kelly and Dermot O'Leary, were given a fright when their light aircraft, carrying them from the Kenyan capital of Nairobi, pitched from side to side before finally touching down.

No wonder they're smiling...the stars finally touch down in the Kaisut desert after a hair-raising flight from Nairobi

X-Factor heartthrob Olly Murs emerges from his tent on day two of the desert trek A blog on the official Comic Relief website names Olly Murs as a particularly jittery member of the party, saying the X-Factor runner-up was 'comforted by TV's Lorraine Kelly as the small aircraft pitched left and right before it touched down on a grass landing strip'.The stars, among them impressionist Ronni Ancona, singer Olly Murs, Strictly Come Dancing champion Kara Tointon, actress and TV presenter Nadia Sawalha and radio presenters Scott Mills and Peter White - have begun their first day of trekking across one of the world's most inhospitable deserts - the Kaisut Desert in northern Kenya - after a day of acclimatising yesterday.
The team will cover 100 kilometres in just five days and face sweltering temperatures of up to 38C.Afterwalking all day under the scorching sun they will camp in the desert and may encounter some deadly snakes along the way - including the Black Mamba and the Puff Adder.
The celebs are leading a caravan of camels which will carry their camping gear and other equipment they need ! for the journey.
Due to heat and gruelling work, experts have estimated that each member of the team will burn around 8,000 calories each day.In preparation for the blistering heat they're likely to experience on the trek, the celebrities have been using a heat chamber where they have been subjected to temperatures of 42 degrees for 45 minutes at a time. TheBT Red Nose Desert Trek will raise money for Comic Relief projects which benefit deprived people across Africa and in the UK.
AComic Relief spokeswoman said the team will be highlighting the issue of sight and the money they raise will prevent thousands of people in Africa from going blind or contracting eye conditions.

Here's to brew! Dermot O'Leary and Kara Tointon toast their first night under canvas as the trek gets underway

During their journey they will encounter people who are losing their sight and need urgent eye care.
A Documentary about the trek will be broadcast on BBC1 in the run up to Red Nose Day on March 18.
People can sponsor the team and get updates about the journey by visiting www.rednoseday.com/trek

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