NI man's fifth attempt on Everest

Gavin Bate, 37, has never reached the summit of the world's highest peak and is hoping this time will be different.

But his main aim is to raise money for the charity Moving Mountains, which he set up in 2001 and which is run from Northern Ireland.

The charity helps build schools, hospitals and monasteries in both Nepal and Kenya and has helped street children and their families.

Gavin, who made his first attempt to reach the top of Everest in 2000, is currently making his way to base camp, via the south east ridge of the mountain.

"Climbing Mount Everest four times has enabled me to raise an estimated £550,000 for the charity, and hopefully this expedition will add to that figure," he said on his website.

Spring is said to be the best time to climb Mount Everest

On his first attempt to reach the summit, Gavin was forced to turn back 100 metres from the top and said he had been left with "unfinished business".

On the second occasion, he had to abandon the trip after his companion dislocated his knee.

He returned to Everest in 2005 but his efforts to reach the summit were thwarted "because of a queue".

But two years ago, as he climbed up the mountain, he suffered a build-up of fluid in his lungs, and collapsed. He also suffered from hypothermia.

Gavin and his team now have to acclimatise once more to the treacherous conditions on the mountain. They will have a number of trial climbs, but hope to make their main ascent next month.

His spokesman Gareth Irvine said: "His main purpose is altruistic.

"He is hoping to build a monastery and a school in the Everest region and raise the profile of the Moving Mountains charity."

The charity was started by Gavin in 2001 after many years working in the slums of Nairobi.

"I have been exploring and running expeditions all my life now, and have seen some remarkable things along the way," he wrote.

"But time and again I return to the people I have met in the slums of Kenya and in the rural villages of Nepal, whose lives and friendships have so deeply affected my own.

"If my expeditions to climb Everest can make these projects happen with the Moving Mountains Trust then all my efforts will have been worth it."