Norwich to Spain walk for Motor Neurone Disease Association

The 64-year-old set off from Norwich Cathedral on Tuesday and is heading for Santiago de Compostela in north-west Spain, which represents the end of the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route.

Steven, from Rendlesham in Suffolk, did parts of the walk with his wife Rachael, who died at the end of 2022 after battling motor neurone disease, so saw it as a great tribute to her.

The couple met in Norwich in 1979 at the University of East Anglia, so the Fine City provided a fitting start line for the gruelling effort.

Steven said: “Rachael liked meeting people, she loved travelling as well as music and languages.  

“She could sit next to anyone on a bus and within minutes she would be chatting away to them.” 

One of the couple’s favourite things to do together was walking.  

Rachael Howe died in late 2022 after fighting motor neurone disease (Image: Submitted)

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Steven continued: “Rachael really loved walking in the Highlands and along the Suffolk coast – especially if her daughters and their dogs joined us.

“For my 50th birthday, I walked the last 200 miles and we had planned to finish it.  

“I wanted to complete what we had started together.  

Steven Howe, left, was joined by Malcolm Chubbock, the chairman of the Norfolk and Waveney branch of the Motor Neurone Disease Association, as he started his epic walk from Norwich Cathedral on August 1 (Image: MNDA)

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“It felt really positive to start it where we met, we often visited Norwich and it’s the place where I have really happy memories and lots of our loved ones came to see me off.” 

Steven decided to take on the walk because he is retired and wanted to do it before his legs gave out.

He added: “Racheal took part in lots of drug trials in the hope that other people didn’t have to die of this horrible disease.  

Steven Howe wants to take on the challenging walk in memory of his wife (Image: Steven Howe)

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“You have to remember to make the best of the time you have with your loved ones, do everything that they want to do.  

“Rachael used every moment to do the things she enjoyed, even when she was in a wheelchair.”

Steven has targeted raising £33,205 for the Motor Neurone Disease Association and has already raised more than £3,400. You can follow the journey on his page at Justgiving.com. 

He made it to Banham on his first stretch (Image: Steven Howe)