Seeds: Growing

Fast forward to 2022 and it was the first ‘normal’ year post-Covid. Like many in Covid we had headed for the hills, the Wicklow Hills, as soon as we could once restrictions had been lifted. I escaped Covid (as far as I know) , as did my wife, brother, sister-in-law and 92 year old mother - but all the children got it - some several times. Many people incubated lofty plans during Covid, and I was no exception - mine was to climb Mont Blanc, the highest peak in Western Europe and I persuaded my 19 year old daughter to do it with me. Why? I don’t know really, I wanted a challenge, I needed to push myself and I as I headed towards my mid-fifties I felt the clock ticking and realised that if I wanted to challenge myself physically then it had to be done sooner rather than later. I left the offer to come along to all in my family, but only my youngest daughter showed interest! This was a step up in hiking terms and you don’t just climb Mont Blanc in shorts and t-shirts (it has been done though) - this needed preparation. So, we signed up with various guided hiking groups to climb the highest peaks in Ireland. What an eye-opener - peak one - Lughnaquilla, the highest peak in Leinster at just under 1,000 metres (note Mont Blanc is over 4,800 metres). On a wet, windy and cold day climbing Lughnaquilla in February we learned that our gear was totally inadequate and we realised we were way off from any consideration of Mont Blanc. We invested in the right gear, learned along the way and hit the 4 highest provincial peaks and had great fun along the way - we were all set. For us, Mont Blanc was an expedition into the unknown, but I know for many MB is a piece of cake. As we did our final packing the night before heading to Chamonix the same nerves that hit me before heading to South America were there again - what am I doing - but this time I had responsibility for my 19 year old daughter - what was I bringing her into!