Princess Kate completes remarkable Three Peaks Challenge mountain climb
Princess Kate is keeping it casual while completing the Three Peaks Challenge.
The Princess of Wales, 44, revealed she scaled the three highest peaks in Great Britain in 24 hours to raise money for the Royal Marsden Cancer Charity, in an Instagram post on Sunday, June 28. In the photo, Kate leaned against a rock while sporting a black hooded windbreaker and baseball cap, no frills outside of her sapphire and diamond wedding and engagement ring by way of Princess Diana.
In her post, she called it "not simply as a physical endeavour but as a chance to explore life beyond diagnosis and to give something back."
The charity supports work at the hospital where she underwent cancer treatment.
"Lots of people have asked me why I'm doing this challenge, and partly it's personal. I'm so grateful to be here, to be strong enough to walk these hills," she said in a follow-up video on Instagram. "But, more importantly, it's to give something back and acknowledge really all the incredible work going on up and down this country."
Kate, who is in remission, wrote that cancer affects more than just the body and comes with emotional and psychological challenges, requiring more than just medical treatment. She said she completed the challenge to highlight the importance of holistic, "whole person" approaches to cancer care.
"Healing, whether personal or collective, is not just about fixing what is wrong. It is about finding balance in how we live," she wrote.
After she completed the challenge, Kate was greeted by Prince William and their children, as well as her parents and brother, James Middleton.
Fellow hikers shared how they ran into the princess while climbing, with one person noting their group did not recognize her.
"My friends did not notice her passing by at all," Jacky Leung wrote in a Facebook post, sharing video of the princess climbing up stone stairs in a blue T-shirt, green cargo pants and a backpack. "Completing the National Three Peaks Challenge in 24 hours is a serious test of grit, and Her Royal Highness showed immense strength and spirit."
Pete Haslam's mission Saturday was to complete the Three Peaks Challenge while carrying his paraplegic son, Ted, in his wheelchair. The 11-year-old was diagnosed with an aggressive spinal tumor at the age of three and is paralyzed from the waist down.
Haslam told USA TODAY Monday June 29 that a group of 17 people worked to get Ted up the mountains, pushing and pulling him as they went. The group - made up of friends and family members - gave themselves a target of 30 hours to complete the challenge. On the way down Scotland's Ben Nevis, the group "bumped into" the future queen, Haslam said.
"She took the time to stop and chat with us for 5 minutes," he said, adding that several hours later the group passed the princess again - this time on England's Scafell Pike mountain. She asked Ted if he was cold and joked that some of the group were still wearing their t-shirts despite the wet weather conditions and the wind.
The group were hiking to raise money for children's charity Molly Ollys.
Like Kate's husband, Prince William, Ted is a massive Aston Villa fan, Haslam said. "Ted goes to every home game," he said, adding that Ted had met the future king in the past. Haslam said he asked Kate to tell the future king that she had seen them during the challenge.
Following her 2024 cancer diagnosis, Kate underwent a course of preventative chemotherapy after having abdominal surgery. Her treatment ended months later, and in January 2025, she revealed her cancer is in remission. She has continued to highlight the work done at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London and visit with patients at the center.
Contributing: Reuters