TWO self-confessed “old and unfit” men are to kayak the length of the Basingstoke Canal to raise money for a Surrey wildlife hospital, despite one of them suffering a heart attack after a training session.

Jason Ing and Lee Johnson hope to raise £2,000 for Harper Asprey Wildlife Rescue, an emergency wildlife hospital in Windlesham that works closely with the Save Me Trust set up by Queen guitarist and wildlife campaigner Sir Brian May, who is a local resident.

Jason and Lee are setting off on the 32-mile journey, including portaging their 32kg (70lb) kayak around 29 locks, on Saturday 7 September from the River Wey end of the canal. After an overnight stop at Mytchett, they will finish at the Greywell Tunnel on Sunday.

Jason and his wife Claire, who live in Camberley, started helping Harper Asprey Wildlife Rescue during the pandemic.

Jason, who works from home as a sales manager for a software company started kayaking with his friend Lee, who lives in Southampton, to get regular exercise.

The fundraising kayak trip came about when Claire, who now works for Harper Asprey, and their daughter Ruby, suggested he do a sponsored kayak for the charity.

“As a joke, I said: ‘Why don’t I kayak the length of the Basingstoke Canal?’ and they said ‘that would be amazing!’,” Jason said.

After researching the details of the endeavour, he asked Lee to help him.

The pair started training every week on the canal, the River Wey and the Thames and Lee has put in extra miles on the River Hamble near Southampton.

All went well until about a month ago when Jason collapsed at home with a heart attack after returning from a 10-mile paddle.

After surgery to have a stent fitted and recovery and rehabilitation, Jason and Lee got back on the water as soon as possible.

“I used to do all the carrying of the kayak as it belongs to me but Lee now does a bit more lifting than he used to,” Jason said.

Canals are well known for being home to often angry swans and geese, but Jason and Lee have developed strategies to avoid trouble.

“You give them space and try not to make eye contact and if they start to chase you, you paddle fast.

“We’ve not come across any snakes yet. We saw one at Odiham but we weren’t in the kayak at the time.”

The official title of the trip is “Kayaking for Wildlife”, but Jason, 46, and Lee, 49, proudly call themselves “Two Old Blokes in a Kayak” while Jason’s sister-in-law came up with #heartattackforhedgehogs, which refers to the Harper Asprey hedgehog campaign Project Amazing Grace.

“We rescue, rehabilitate and release our native wildlife. From tiny dormice to the majestic deer and everything in between,” Claire said.

“We run solely on donations with no ‘owners’ for the animals that come into the charity, so it is up to us to constantly source funds.”