Did you know there is a Wigan in the Philippines? We didn’t either until we heard about Wigan man Chris Woodward, who backpacked there to raise awareness and money for men’s mental health charity Andy’s Man Club.
Chris, known as ‘Woody’, from Newtown in Wigan, set off in September 2024 on what he calls his “Coal Pit to Coconut” adventure. He walked, hitchhiked, camped, and sometimes flew, trekking through 14 countries including France, Italy, Greece, Thailand, India and Vietnam.
In June 2025, after 180 days, Chris finally arrived in Wigan, Philippines, riding in on a scooter, completing his incredible mission. On his return home we caught up with him to hear about his journey, and can honestly say he was an absolute joy to speak to.
From the moment he opened the front door, with a big beaming smile, and tan from his travels, we knew this was going to be fascinating. We could have spent hours listening to his stories, including him getting a ‘job’ in India, selling towels: “100 rupees, each, I sold two in five minutes, with a big crowd watching me”, and his eventual arrival in the other Wigan, with no fanfare whatsoever. “
"No-one could speak English and there was hardly anyone about, so I had to keep pointing to a picture of the ‘Wigan’ sign, then they understood, and after about half an hour of faffing about, I finally got there”.
Chris was also very open about past struggles with his mental health: “Without Andy’s Man Club, I probably wouldn’t be here. This time last year I was incredibly low, but from the first time I stepped through the door, they helped me, and through speaking out about my emotions, I knew I had to do something for myself and my state of mind.”
Chris told us he’d seen a story about a man who’d backpacked from Cardiff in Wales to Cardiff in Australia, so he googled ‘Wigan’ and to his surprise, found two Wigans, one in the Philippines and one in Canada: “I thought I can’t swim the Atlantic, so I chose to follow the sun, and head to the Philippines”.
He gave up his flat, sold most of his belongings, and set off on his journey, documenting every day on social media platforms including Facebook and Tiktok, under his “Coal Pit to Coconut” moniker.
So, what’s Wigan in the Philippines like? It’s “very small with a population of about 300 to 400, a couple of shops, a school and a basketball court. Apart from that, nothing else except coconut trees and rice fields.”
Chris told us he had struggled with his mental health on the journey, but said the ups far outweighed the downs: “Every country I went through and every single person I met was a highlight… I couldn’t have done it without them”.
He’s raised almost £1k so far toward his £2,500 goal, with donations still open via his GoFundMe campaign.
Since returning home Chris has no plans to put his feet up. On the 10th of July he is setting off to walk Hadrian’s Wall, continuing his fundraising for Andy’s Man Club. After that, he’s planning “if my leg holds up” he’ll be walking from John O’Groats to Land’s End.
After that, there IS still that Wigan in Canada, which he says “is a dream at the moment”, but we’re willing him to get there!
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