TIM Bridgman’s 37,000-mile North2North cycle has reached its bittersweet end in Alaska.

A carpenter from Devon, Tim Bridgman and his wife Sharon had a personal goal to cycle the world, crossing four great land masses.

Starting in Norway, they would travel south through Europe and Africa, then head north from the tip of South America, crossing Central America and the USA, aiming to re-enter the Arctic Circle at Alaska.

Named the North2North epic, the cycle would mean a 37,000-mile route through 32 countries, every mile covered to benefit the charity ShelterBox, the international disaster relief agency based in Cornwall, only 80-miles from their home near Okehampton.

However, the Bridgmans’ dream turned into a nightmare as they neared the Chilean border on Bolivia’s barren Uyuni salt flats in April 2014. Sharon was in a fatal collision with the only vehicle they had seen that day, and sadly lost her life.

Tim said: “The accident reminds you that you can lose all that in an instant. Mentally, I needed to go back and finish what we started. After Sharon’s death, I went back home and wasn’t prepared to be back there without her. I had left my bike in Bolivia because I knew that I would be back.”

Having completed the remaining 15,000-miles on his own, Tim crossed the finish line in Prudhoe Bay in Alaska last week.

He said: “Sharon had every bit of strength I did, and she should have been there too. I took a bottle of bubbly, but didn’t feel like jumping with joy.”

Nancy Dodge, a ShelterBox ambassador in Alaska, joined Tim for the last leg, helping to sort permissions to cross the oil fields. Together, they put up a ShelterBox tent on the shores of Prudhoe Bay, the most northerly site ever used in the charity’s 16-year history.

Tim received a congratulatory phone call recently from ShelterBox chief executive Chris Warham.

It is estimated that he and Sharon raised approximately £48,000 for the charity’s disaster relief work. Tim is being joined in Alaska by friends from Devon, and will take a holiday with them before returning home.

Tim added: “What compelled us around ShelterBox was that it didn’t matter who you were, where you came from, the organisation helps people who have lost everything in an instant.

“So many charities waste money and resources, and you never really know where the donations are going. But with ShelterBox, you see so many people around the world who have lost everything in a crisis, benefitting from the work of the organisation.”