Mother-of-four Sharon Flower has trudged more than 1,000 miles from the Palace Pier in Brighton to the north-westerly tip of Scotland.

She spent a gruelling 106 days walking through wind and rain and made many unexpected diversions due to the foot-and-mouth crisis.

But Sharon finds it strange she is receiving more kudos for her walk than she received in 18 years of caring for her mother. Raising the profile of carers, the "forgotten people" of Britain, was the reason she set off in the first place.

Sharon, of Cuckfield Road, Ansty, Haywards Heath, has dedicated herself to making sure those who care for sick or elderly friends or relatives do not remain unsung heroes.

Sharon, 45, was a carer until her mother's death eight years ago.

Her father died suddenly when she was 18, leaving her to care for her mother, who suffered from severe rheumatoid arthritis.

She said: "I had just finished my A-levels and was planning to do a degree. That had to be put on hold, although I managed to do it later.

"My mother couldn't walk, shop, clean or cook for herself."

She said it was fitting it was Mother's Day when, armed with a mobile phone and a sturdy pair of boots, she started her 1,160 mile walk to Cape Wrath in Scotland.

Her determination to spread the message of the Carers' National Association (CNA) and raise funds for its work drove her on. She even walked to the top of Ben Nevis on her day off.

Sharon is now back home with husband John, headteacher of St Paul's Catholic College in Haywards Heath, and money is pouring in.

She said: "The first two weeks it rained almost every day and I was wading through floods. By the time I got to Derbyshire I had a strong wind blowing into my face constantly. At the end of every day I felt like I had walked twice as far.

"I averaged 12 to 15 miles a day.

"I got to meet lots of people and because I had a sign on my bag, many of them gave me money.

"I had lots of coverage on local radio so people stopped their cars to give me money. I had an old lady pursue me up a hill in Bath. She had been trying to catch up with me but said I was walking too fast!"

Sharon stopped off to give talks about carers.

She said: "Because I've been there, people listened to me."

Among those who took her in were the Tibetan Buddhist monastery in Dumfries and the chief of the Cameron clan, who invited her to his castle for a cup of tea.

She said: "It was a great physical relief to finish. Now I am home I am finding it noisy and the water tastes stale.

"But I've lost about a stone and my daughter says my bottom has shrunk!"

Sharon's aim is to raise more than £5,000 for CNA. The CNA provides help for carers and lobbies the Government on their behalf.

Sharon said: "Even though my walk required a great deal of effort, it is nothing in comparison to what a carer does every day of the week, year after year."

Donations can be made at any bank to Sharon Flower Walking for Carers account, NatWest, Sort Code 60 10 26, or by sending cheques made out to Sharon Flower Walking for Carers c/o Carers National Association, 20-25 Glasshouse Yard, London, EC1A 4JT.