SAFE after three days stuck on the Matterhorn without food, Gary Parker decided to quit mountaineering.

But the next day he conquered the mountain that had caused him to doubt the wisdom of participating in one of life's most unforgiving yet rewarding pursuits.

It is an experience the 50-year-old Newport accountant selects as among the most memorable from almost 25 years of climbing, a passion that has led him to branch out in his business life.

Mr Parker launched Seven Summits Expeditions, based at the same new Gold Tops address - Summit House - as the Parker and Company accountancy firm he set up in 1993, and of which he is senior partner.

He led civilian and military expeditions across the world, the latter during a ten-year stint in the armed forces, climbing in the Himalayas, Alaska, Africa, and the Middle East.

"Seven Summits isn't about guided trips. I haven't got a lot of time for guides.

"It's about expeditions where you do everything yourselves when you're out on the mountains," said Mr Parker. "The name refers to the highest peak in each continent.

"There is a phrase in mountaineering called Seven Summits fever. I've done four but I'd love to do them all, and hopefully I'll get the chance."

One of the peaks that so far eludes Mr Parker is Mount Everest, the world's highest, though he is to lead a British expedition scheduled for 2007, attempting to tackle the mountain's North Ridge.

Aconcagua, in South America, Mount McKinley, in Alaska, and Mount Elbrus, in Russia, are among the seven summit peaks Mr Parker tackled.

He can also claim three mountains in the Himalayas higher than 20,000 feet, Mont Blanc in the Alps (16 times), the Eiger and the Matterhorn, among his triumphs.

"It is a passion. My wife, Lisa, jokes that I have affairs with mountains!" he said.

"The Matterhorn experience in the late 1980s was hard and made me think a bit, but when we'd got down I met someone who was going to go up and decided I had to go with them.

"The weather was foul but it was a fantastic experience."