INSPIRED by his eldest son Louis, who suffers from autism, Network Rail man Darran Broderick walked in soaring temperatures for more than 60 miles along the Great Wall of China to raise £3,500 for the National Autistic Society.

Darran, 33, a Swindon-based train delay attributor, slogged his way along the wall – which dates back more than 2,000 years – for seven days.

His epic trek meant walking nine to 11 hours each day, pushing himself to the limit, and was sponsored to the tune of £1,200 by Network Rail, as well as local businesses, family and friends.

The father-of-four’s efforts to organise backing for the event began last January.

“An estimated 500,000 people in the UK are affected by autism or Asperger’s, and the National Autistic Society provides sufferers and their carers with valuable support.

“Louis was an obvious inspiration for me to take part in the group trek, and I can quite confidently say that I earned every penny of my sponsorship!” said Darran.

“We worked it out that we covered about 60 miles over- all, but taking into account the gradients and the fact that we mainly walked on the unrestored parts of the wall, it was still quite an impressive distance to cover.

“The last day was very short but very challenging. We climbed over 1,400 steps – which were very uneven – in the dark, to reach one of the Great Wall’s highest watch towers sitting 980m above sea level, by sunrise.”

Darran was trekking on what is classed as a World Heritage Site and is one of the Great Wonders of the World.

The Great Wall meanders from east to west in northern China for more than 4,160 miles, passing through a number of provinces. The first sections were built well over 2,000 years ago as defensive fortifications.

Much of the wall has been repaired over the years but part of it, just north of Beijing, is in its original state.