Hi all, this week I’ve still been coming to the terms of losing my dog but in some way, being so busy has helped me through it. I still miss him lots. It makes you appreciate things so much more and makes going off to dangerous mountains seem ever more selfish. But that debate is a blog post in itself…

I had a great excursion to the Brecon Beacons last Tuesday with documentary film-maker Chris Beard- a blog post and some photo’s about that coming up soon. I’ve found out more about my Baruntse expedition and getting really excited. My initial worries of fitness have been pretty much quashed. I’m the strongest I’ve ever been. Through being probably a bit over-cautious, I’ve stayed injury free, which was always my priority from day one. I probably can’t do it very quickly, but I know I can head out on a walk, run or bike and keep going for hours and hours (no rude jokes please).  I will spend the last week before the trip resting from training to recover and getting the last minute bits of admin done, eating lots (as I expect to lose a fair bit of weight on the trip) and chilling- a rare commodity for myself! This week’s shout-out goes to my mountain guide friend Jon Gupta who will be heading to the Himalayas himself in a few weeks time to guide Ama Dablam. He’s also an Everest summiteer!

I’m also pleased to announce Cammell-Laird as another confirmed sponsor, one of my smaller ‘Advanced Base Camp’ sponsors. Cammell-Laird are one of the most famous names in British industry, and so I’m really pleased to have them onboard. It has continued to develop its capability in the marine sector, and is a world leader specialising in military ship refit, commercial ship repair, upgrade and conversion and shipbuilding. Today the company is rapidly expanding as a cutting edge engineering services specialist. Its highly skilled workforce and extensive world class facilities are used to support a broad range of sectors and projects. You can find out more here: www.clbh.co.uk.

So to catch up (I’m a bit behind)… A couple of weeks ago I went wild camping with my mate Ste Rumbelow last week who like me is proudly supported by Craghoppers clothing. Craghoppers have kindly supplied me with really good quality trekking wear which I’ll use for training and on the expeditions, as well as a financial contribution in collaboration with their distributor Ralawise who are based in Chester.

We had a great time, climbing lots of peaks in unbelievably good weather. This time I’d cranked it up with 45lbs on my back, and slogging it up to our camp at Angle Tarn near Esk Pike, was a real test. I’d had a disaster with the UHT Milk in my Rucksack, spilling everywhere and trashing my beloved sandwiches. Lesson learnt. We got great sunsets and sunrises, views to Scafell Pike, and although we cut the walk a bit short we were both knackered and had a good laugh, in quite simply the most amazing wild camping site. I’m loving the concept and can’t wait for more. Here’s a few piccies of our camp and us in our Craghoppers gear. And no, I can’t float on water…

And I picked up some expedition gear for Baruntse too. Here’s me showing off my new Marmot Greenland Baffled jacket on the tourist bus in Ambleside. I got some funny looks- best keep that one for 7000m, in just a months time. It’s so unbelievably light and compact yet SO warm. Don’t forget to check out Marmot’s new Winter/Fall range on their website, it’s top quality stuff. Proud to be supported by them as an extreme equipment sponsor.

Ste has also kindly produced my NEW Climb4Change logo. I love it, and this will be my branding for the whole project and come to the top of the world with me next year., What do you think?

Over and out, time for a run!