A CHARD woman who embarked on an epic adventure to scatter her dad’s ashes in Cambodia has raised more than £5,000 with her Asian expedition.

Yvonne van Balen ventured out on a 10-day trek to Angkor Wat and collected thousands of pounds in donations for Cancer Research UK after the disease killed her father.

She said: “The whole experience has been absolutely amazing and certainly challenging.

“The climate of Cambodia is very hot and humid, and that made the walking quite difficult.

“We mainly walked over sandy and dusty paths, through jungles and rice fields, and climbed to the top of the Kulen Mountain range.”

Before she set out on her great mission, Yvonne told The News that her dad was a world traveller who wanted his ashes scattered in places he always wanted to visit.

Yvonne’s daughter undertook the first part of this, taking some of his ashes to Jaipur in India, while Yvonne completed the second part.

Yvonne added: “Cambodia as a country is very flat and the people are very welcoming.

“They are quite proud of the fact that they have been living in peace and harmony for the past 20 years after the Khmer Rouge killed 1.5 million of the population.

“When you come across the elderly people now, they are still quite scarred by what happened to them and their families, and they are the ones begging mainly in temples and monasteries.”

Yvonne had been trekking for five days when she reached Angkor Wat, a temple complex dating back to the 12th Century.

She added: “Every day I was looking for a possible resting place for my father, but never felt the right one, until we arrived at Angkor Wot, the most impressive temple in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

“There it was where I scattered my father’s ashes, and felt at peace.

“I would like to say a big thank you to Tesco in Chard who raised an amazing £300.

“I would like to say a huge thank you to Jenny Curtis, our Slimming World group leader, and within the group I raised £298.10.

“My Aqua Fit ladies raised £182.”

The rest of the money has been raised by Yvonne’s family and friends, and and now totals £5,000.

She added: “Thank you all so much for making this amazing challenge come true, and sponsoring such a good cause - Cancer Research UK.”