Now that there is finally an improvement in my condition, I can start to put a plan together for the next couple of year !

Having followed the Everest 2004 expedition with much excitement and now I can see an end to my problems, I can now start planning for the next couple of years. Without further complications, I will be able to gain a lot of fitness in the next 3 months in preparaion for getting back into the mountains. I will then have another 4 months of walking time before the next planned expedition !

As a build up to my next Everest attempt, I will be going to New Zealand in January to climb Mount Cook. The lower altitude will be a good test for the leg and to see if there is enough circulation in the foot to handle the cold temperatures of High Altitude mountaineering. The 3 main Peaks I will be hoping to climb are Mount Aspiring, which at 3027m, will be the acclimatisation climb for the trip. The relatively easy grade should ensure success as long as the weather is favourable. The trip will then move North to the Mount Cook National Park to climb Mount Cook and Mount Tasman. The weather is very unpredictable and enough supplies for 7 days will be taken to the Plateau to allow for sitting out storms. Mount Cook will be the 1st objective here and Mount Tasman will be a bonus if the weather remains stable. We will attempt to climb the Zurbriggen Ridge on Mount Cook which will require a very early start due to its technical difficulties and to allow a safer descent down the Linda Glacier route. Mount Tasman will be attempted via the Silverhorn Ridge which will also be the route of descent but hopefully by this time, we will be fully acclimatised and should appreciate what will be an amazing summit ridge and not be so rushed for time. Before arriving in New Zealand, we will be stopping off for a week in Australia and on the last day will do a long walk to climb Australias highest peak at 2228m, Mount Kosciusko.

I will be using my holidays from 2004 for this trip which which is 14 days holiday entitlement. However, this still leaves me with 8 days holiday for 2003 and I will be spending a week diving in the Red Sea sometime in October. This is a non physical holiday but is an ideal oportunity to remove a major tick from my list of todo's. I am BSAC Sports Diver qualified so should be able to make the most out of the week. The remaining 3 days will be used for long weekends in the Autumn before my work colleage goes off on holiday in December.

In the summer of 2005, it is vital that I save money and so I will be organising a trip for my climbing club to the Alps in the summer. I will also persuade a few other friends to come along to improve the climbing standard of the group and to provide more options for people. As usual for my Alps trips, I have several routes already planned including a traverse of the Nadelgrat and an ascent of Mont Blanc via the Innominata Ridge.

The stage will then be set. I would be back to full fitness and have the confidence back to treat my broken leg as normal, then it would be just a matter of staying fit for the following 7 months before my return to Everest at the end of March 2006. I can't wait to get back out there and will find the next 2 years will seam to drag on for a long time. Although the 13 months since my return from the 2003 expedition, have flown passed but this is mainly due to my innactivity. At least I will have 3 other trips to look forward to 1st. Lets hope that the remaining months of 2004 will see even more improvement.

There are many possibilities for Everest 2006 as hopefully there will be the media interest in my return. I will again be climbing with Adventure Peaks and the team for this expedition is already starting to build with a few of the climbers from the 2004 team considering a another attempt having given up on their summit bid at 7800m on the 21st May due to bad weather. Also from 2003, Patricia McGuirk may return if she finds she has gained the confidence she lacked on that expedition. It would be great if she could make it again as she would be a welcome addition to any team.

Now, only time will tell !

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