A trek in the Andes to raise funds for a worthwhile cause was also the trip of a lifetime for two local women.

STUNNING scenery, mind-blowing history, challenging trekking and conversation dominated by the heart-breaking needs of people whose minds and personalities are twisted by that most cruel of diseases, Alzheimer's.

A trek to Machu Picchu in Peru in May combined all these elements when Patricia Burke and Jane Cunnane (pictured right) took part in a charity trek for the Alzheimer's Society.

Both women had sad memories of the effect of the disease on family members, and grasped the opportunity to help raise funds for the dementia support charity.

Patricia can never forget the awful months when her mother, an active and independent woman in her 60s, began acting strangely. "She began doing horrific things and then realising what she had done. She used to run a garden party for charity, and once when people were at her home for lunch to raise funds, she went to make the teas and coffees and served them up without boiling the kettle. She laughed it off but afterwards was mortified.

"She had been such a dignified lady, and now felt embarrassed and humiliated by the strange things she realised she was doing. She began having tests for early onset Alzheimer's, but before they were completed, she was diagnosed with cancer and died a few months later. Strangely, watching her descent into Alzheimer's was even worse than watching the cancer take hold."

Not long after, Patricia's friend Jane found herself helping her mother care for her father, who had full-blown Alzheimer's. He became aggressive, a danger to himself and difficult for his wife to handle. After his death, she did a lot of fundraising for Alzheimer care.

When Patricia and Jane heard of the Peru Trek organised by the Alzheimer's Society, both wanted to take part.

Patricia, who is this magazine's Advertising Manager, and Jane, who runs the Chiltern Dance Academy, set out to get fit for the challenging trek, organise their families and raise funds.

"We didn't want to ask around for sponsorship," Patricia explains. "Instead we wanted to give people something in return for supporting the cause. After all, we were getting a fantastic experience out of it. We held a 70s disco night and ran a dancathon at Orchard nightclub for Chiltern Dance Academy students. Between us we raised £5,400 for the Alzheimer's Society."

They also chose to pay the full fee of £1,360 each for the trip, so that every penny raised could go to the charity's work.

While Jane, as a dance teacher, was already pretty fit, Patricia found the training harder going, joining a gym and going on a fast walk each Sunday morning.That wasn't the only challenge. "I don't like flying and there were three flights to reach the start, and I don't like heights but had to trek along narrow ledges with sheer drops," she recalls.

"But the most difficult point was when Jane experienced severe altitude sickness after we flew into Cusco. She couldn't lift her head off the pillow. The doctor said it would pass in time, and she managed to start trekking two days later."

From then on the four days on the Inca Trail were unforgettable, with the most amazing scenery in the tranquil mountains. It was also quite diverse: "Sometimes we'd be on mountain grassland which looked quite like the Chilterns, then we'd be in cloud forest like something out of Jurassic Park. And sometimes we'd be walking along narrow paths high over steep valleys with spectacular views."

They camped each night, and finally arrived at their destination, the ancient ruined city of Machu Picchu, to be confronted with hordes of tourists arriving by coach and train.

That day also provided a funny moment. They had put on their Alzheimer's Society t-shirts that day and overheard an American tourist say: "Look, that group have all got Alzheimer's."

Travelling with likeminded companions added immeasurably to the trip, Patricia says. "There were 50 of us, and just about everyone had been touched in some way by Alzheimer's through a relative or friend. It was really quite moving.

"One woman in her 50s had been caring for her husband who has Alzheimer's for ten years, and had arranged respite care so that she could do the charity trek. She was worried about him all the time.

"There were so many people there that I really admired. And people were very supportive of one another when the route got very steep and challenging at high altitudes. Unforgettable."

Alzheimer's Society 020 7306 0606 www.alzheimers.org.uk The charity is organising a Great Wall of China Trek as well as another Inca Trail Trek in May, details 0870 417 0192.