An adventure-loving shopkeeper, keen to push himself physically before he "gets too old", is back serving customers after climbing one of the world’s highest mountains.
Paresh Patel, 56, who has been the owner of the Mini Store convenience shop on Church Road, Epsom, for 21 years, climbed the 6,000m high Mount Kilimanjaro, in Tanzania, in a week, between June 30 and July 6.
Along with his wife Shilpa and four friends, he took on the feat to raise money for Stoma, a Kenyan cancer charity, after a friend of his, from Kenya, suffered with the disease 10 years ago.
The group, four of whom reached the peak’s summit, generated £3,500 for the charity.
Mr Patel, who lives in Hinchley Wood, said that although they are not regular mountaineers, the team was "mentally prepared" for the climb, but found it "very, very hard".
He said: "We didn’t have time to acclimatise, but we did as we went along. We were determined and we persevered."
The shopkeeper, who trained for nine months for the climb, said he has run five marathons and enjoys "demanding" challenges.
He added: "It taught me how important life is and how short it can be and how you should do everything that’s physically possible before you get too old."
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