The Hard Road brothers Jacob and Flynn Sauer walk from Perth to Albany, raising $11k for Black Dog Institute

Two brothers who spent a gruelling seven days trekking from Perth to Albany to raise money for mental health said they were “relieved” to reach their end point atop Mt Clarence on Wednesday evening. Jacob and Flynn Sauer said they were inspired to start their campaign, The Hard Road, with a goal to raise $10,000 for the Black Dog Institute, after seeing family and friends go through their own struggles. “We’ve had a few people close to us to have been really down the dumps and decided they didn’t want to be around anymore and we’ve seen the other side of it, the family and how it affects a lot of people,” Albany resident Jacob said. “So we were really trying to find a way to share a bit of a positive outlook.” The week-long journey on foot inevitably proved tough, with the jog slowing to a “limp” and the feat taking a physical toll on the brothers’ minds and bodies — eventually resulting in a hospital visit for Flynn on the penultimate night after he developed a stomach ulcer. However, Jacob said the difficulties helped them understand not only the everyday battle people with mental health issues face, but the importance of support systems in facing that battle. “We were looking at each other inside the road a few times, trying to size each other up, like, can we keep doing this,” Jacob said. “It would have been easier to quit but we somehow managed to keep pushing. “And each day, even though it did get harder, it sort of got easier to have a community back us up.” Many people rallied the brothers along the 400km trek, with the Williams police and Mt Barker firefighters escorting them as the passed through the towns, as well as strangers reaching out to offer a bed for the night, food, or simply their own stories and a pat on the back. “At the start, people were like, looking at us, like, what are you guys doing?“ Jacob said. “We got a lot of weird looks but people started smiling, recognising us, and then people started pulling over and talking and giving us hugs. “I felt like I was gonna pass I’d be able to push on near the airport and a guy in a truck pulled over and shared a bit of his story and, it happened more and more as we came in.” A crowd of family, friends and supportive strangers welcomed the brothers with applause as they breached the final steps to the Desert Corps Memorial atop of Mt Clarence. The Sauers’ impressive walk raised $11,343 for the Black Dog Institute.