"You're off to great places, Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting, so... get on your way. Oh the places you'll go" (Dr. Seuss)

You're off to great places,
Today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting, 
So... get on your way..!
-Dr. Seuss, Oh the Places You'll Go

A few final thoughts as the count-down well and truly begins..! I've put my finely tuned project management skills into overdrive and my two bags are already parked at the front door waiting to whisked away on yet another this great adventure..! I have a number of different emotions and thoughts going around in my head - nerves, excitement, standing on the cusp of the known and the unknown... Soon this journey will 'formally' begin... and I can't wait..!!

Before leaving a few "Thank Yous"…

Thank you to my amazing friends - for your many emails, calls and words of wisdom. Thanks for your kindness and for making me laugh during those moments when I needed to most and for listening and for picking up so many thing for me while I am away. You guys are the best and I really really can't wait to have a drink with you all on a very sunny patio this summer.  A huge special thank you to my amazing flatmates and friends, DJ Lora  and Kirsten. You guys rock. Literally...!!

A huge thank you to the charity, Hope for Tomorrow through which I’ve had the pleasure of meeting and working with two amazing women, Christine Mills and Alex Trapnell.  I'm really excited to be working with you on yet another adventure..! 

Thank you to my family - for your patience and for the spirit of adventure that I am certain that I inherited from you.... although there is some argument which side of the family it actually came from..! I know how much you worry about me but, in the same breath, how much you totally stand behind and support everything that I do. 

Thank you to Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC) and to my colleagues for your support, encouragement and strength. Thanks also to the fantastic project team still plugging away while I go - will think of you heaps and will send text message reminders for status reports!

Thank you to the organisations and individuals who have supported me – Sherpa Adventure Gear, Danielle Sweeney Design, Striders Edge, CHUCS

A final humungous thank you to everyone who has kindly contributed to Hope for Tomorrow. On behalf of the charity, I very much appreciate all of the support that you have shown to this tremendously worthwhile cause. Your donations will certainly help to make the lives of those people living with cancer and requiring chemotherapy much more comfortable, allowing them to have their cancer treatment close to home. 

If you haven't donated but wish to support this fantastic cause you can do so via this link: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/HopeforTomorrowClimb

Next stop - KATHMANDU!!

“So be sure when you step, Step with care and great tact. And remember that life's A Great Balancing Act. And will you succeed? Yes! You will, indeed! (98 and ¾ percent guaranteed) Kid, you'll move mountains.” 

― Dr. Seuss, Oh, The Places You'll Go!

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"After this my first mountain ascent..." (Re)introducing mountaineering pioneer, explorer, adventurer George Ingle Finch

I love this quote by the legendary George Ingle Finch... It captures the passion and ingenuity behind the tremendous achievements of early Everest pioneers. My personal all-time favourite character is George Ingle Finch of the 1922 Everest expedition under General Charles Granville Bruce to Mount Everest.  I'm reminded of Finchs' antics, achievements, creativity and the history of mountaineering on a regular basis thanks to the inside label of my cosy CHUCS down vest... Finch invented the down jacket and was one of the first to use supplemental oxygen on Everest...!  Little did he know what a trend-setter he (like his father, Peter Finch and grandson, Charles Finch) would turn out to be..!

On 23 May 1922 Finch and Captain C. Geoffrey Bruce reached an altitude of 27,300 feet (8,321 m) on the north ridge of Mount Everest. 

George Ingle Finch at Everest Base Camp (1922)

Actor Peter Finch, son of George Ingle Finch

Inside the CHUCS in London on Dover Street
Combining Hollywood glamour with adventure!

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And so the adventure begins - next stop Kathmandu!

"Life is uncharted territory. It reveals its story one moment at a time." (Leo F. Buscaglia 1924-1998).

I have just two short hours until my taxi comes to transport me to Heathrow and on to Kathmandu via New Delhi. My two bags (guess-timate weight is 40kg) are both parked at the front door waiting to whisked away on yet another this great adventure - although, given the weight, the more appropriate term would, in fact, be 'lugged'..! I have a number of different emotions and thoughts going around in my head - nerves, excitement, standing on the cusp of the known and the unknown... Soon this journey will 'formally' begin... and I can't wait..!!

Before leaving to say a few "Thank Yous" that are long overdue…

Thank you to my amazing friends - for your many emails, calls and words of wisdom. Thanks for your kindness and for making me laugh during those moments when I needed to most and for listening and for picking up so many thing for me while I am away. You guys are the best and I really really can't wait to have a drink with you all in the pub in November…! A huge special thank you to my amazing flatmates DJ Lora  and Pieter and my inspirational climbing partner Magda. You guys rock. Literally.

A huge thank you to David English, who is an absolutely legend and a true inspiration having introduced me to the charity, Hope for Tomorrow through which I’ve had the pleasure of meeting and working with two amazing women, Christine Mills and Alex Trapnell.  I'm really excited to be working with you. Your enthusiasm and sense of adventure will no doubt give me strength and determination.

Thank you to my family - for your patience and for the spirit of adventure that I am certain that I inherited from you.... although there is some argument which side of the family it actually came from..! I know how much you worry about me but, in the same breath, how much you totally stand behind and support everything that I do. I promise to do my very best to come back in one piece and that my next adventure will involve butterfly collecting or basket weaving.

Thank you to Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC) and to my colleagues for putting up with my stories and worries and random outbursts on a regular basis. Thank you so much for your support, encouragement and for putting up with me - especially in the last month when my 'hypoxic' state was affecting my short-term memory...

Thank you to the organisations and individuals who have supported me – Sherpa Adventure Gear, Striders Edge, Chucs Dive and Mountain Shop, Maximuscle, and the Sisterhood.

A final humungous thank you to all of you who have kindly contributed to Hope for Tomorrow. On behalf of the charity, I very much appreciate all of the support that you have shown to this tremendously worthwhile cause. Your donations will certainly help to make the lives of those people living with cancer and requiring chemotherapy much more comfortable, allowing them to have their cancer treatment close to home. If you haven't donated but wish to support this fantastic cause you can do so via this link: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/HopeforTomorrowClimb

On that note, I'd best log off here... My next entry will be from the city of organised chaos, Kathmandu!

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The People You Meet: Charles Finch, Entrepreneur, Media Maverick & Founder of CHUCS Dive and Mountain Shop

You could be forgiven for thinking that the words 'glamour' and 'adventure' don’t often make it into the same sentence – let alone the same mountain wardrobe. But, thanks to Charles Finch, entrepreneur, media mavrick and founder of CHUCS Dive and Mountain Shop we can all now look as stylish on the beach – or hiking through the mountains – as we do in the boardroom. After all, as Chucs says, ‘A man’s finest hour is often not in the office or the boardroom, but on he sports field, the hill and at sea!’

Over the past 1.5 years I have had the pleasure of working with Charles Finch, the founder of CHUCS Dive and Mountain Shop and his fantastic team on Dover Street. Charles takes inspiration for his collection of 'mountainwear' and 'beachwear' at CHUCS from his unique and colourful family heritage which spans generations of explorers, scoundrels, actors and inventors..... 

CHUCS’ ‘Dive collection' is infused with unparalleled style based on memories of family holidays in Jamaica where his father, legendary Academy Award winning actor Peter Finch, and pals Errol Flynn, Ian Fleming, Noel Coward and Ian Pringle together formed the nexis of Caribbean elegance. 

CHUCS’ ‘Mountain collection', on the other hand, reflects Charles’ direct personal history with Mount Everest. I have Charles Finch’s grandfather, George Ingle-Finch to thank for my warm down filled jacket (and hence the title of this blog!).

Whilst he was no ‘Diva in Down’, Australian-born George Ingle Finch, referred to by George Mallory as 'Finchie’ was known as much for his sartorial style as for his climbing flair. He invented the ‘puffa’ or down filled jacket before ascending Mount Everest via the NE Ridge with George Mallory in 1922. Whilst they did not reach the allusive summit on the expedition, this historic climb is cemented in the record books as it was the first mountaineering expedition to breach the 8000m barrier and proved to be excellent ‘reconnaissance’ for the 1924 expedition with George Mallory and Andrew Irvine. Finch also wrote a brilliant book, "The Making of a Mountaineer' of his adventures - a book which features prominently on my bookshelf..!

More importantly (and yet another thing that I will be thanking George Finch for in just over a few weeks time) was that George Ingle Finch was the first person to use oxygen whilst at high altitude. Critics thought this was cheating and believed smoking cigarettes would provide greater benefits than supplemental oxygen. This would certainly have changed the nature of Everest Summit photos and the ‘warning labels’ on a pack of Camels. Whilst George never made it to the summit of Everest, he remained an inventor and explorer and his ideas were often realised and accepted years after his own experiments.

“After this, my first mountain ascent, I had made up my mind to see the world, to see it from above, from the tops of mountains”. - George Ingle Finch, 1922

In 2005, Charles founded Finch & Partners creating a London and Paris based media company representing and advising global luxury brands, entertainment companies, celebrated individuals, nation states, and philanthropic organisations on all aspects of image from public relations, brand development, product endorsement and placement, to events and marketing. In 2011, Charles Finch took inspiration from his grandfather and opened CHUCS Dive and Mountain Shop. Ultimately CHUCS Dive and Mountain shop provides the discerning traveller with everything required for a trip to the beach, mountain or hunting lodge…

If you were to go on an expedition for 2 months and hand-pick a team of individuals to be on your team, who would you pick and why?

Charles: If I was about to go on a two month expedition I would take George Ingle-Finch - for obvious reasons..! I'd also add Graham Greene, one of the greatest novelists of the 20th century, to the team because his ambition was to make love behind every alter in every cathedral in Europe. Errol Flynn would also be on the expedition team because he'd be fun. I'd have Michael Sandberg onboard as my personal physician and Daniele, the chef from the Delfino restaurant in Positano would certainly be cooking all of our meals!!

What is the biggest mountain that you've ever climbed - either figuratively or literally?

Charles: Mont Blanc!

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A huge thank you to CHUCS for sharing with me their rich history and for keeping me comfortable (and stylish!) while on the mountain..! The only caveat is, next time I decide to ‘explore often’, please remind me to focus on the ‘dive’ rather than the 'mountain' - a beach holiday, a bikini, espadrilles (and a mojito) are pretty appealing at the moment!!

Live Well. Stand Tall. Give Freely. Explore Often.  CHUCS DIVE AND MOUNTAIN SHOP

CHUCS Dive and Mountain Shop

31 Dover Street, London

http://www.chucs.com

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