A KEEN mountain hiker is preparing for his toughest challenge yet when he climbs Mount Everest.

Michael Reid, from Ashton Road in Newton, will fly to the Nepalese capital, Kathmandu, on October 13 to embark on a 13-day trek to the Himalayan peak of Kala Pattar, 1,000 feet above Everest Base Camp.

The 39-year-old hopes his Everest climb will raise £2,000 for aid agency CAFOD, (the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development).

He said: "It will be the highest I've ever been.

"I'm really excited and can't wait to get out there."

The medical librarian is no stranger to long-distance trekking, having successfully completed the Tiger Leaping Gorge trek in China and followed the ancient Inca trail to Peru's 'lost city' of Machu Picchu.

He has been training hard in the gym for the expedition, working on an elevated treadmill and adding weight to a backpack currently set at 23-lbs.

Michael will be accompanied by his friend, Rob Pamment, as well as several sherpa guides and said that it was seeing poverty at first-hand that inspired him to raise money for CAFOD.

He said: "This trip to Nepal was originally just going to be a holiday but then I thought I couldn't climb two-thirds of the highest mountain in the world and not do it for a worthwhile cause.

"This is the year of Make Poverty History and it's my way of speaking out about poverty and injustice."

Mr Reid has raised £1,700 so far, to help log on to www.justgiving.com/treknepal