Stoked for sunny weather in London town these next few days. So, if your boarding, skiiing, climbing, MTBing or kayaking somewhere gnarly this weekend don't feel too bad for me. Well, still a little bad maybe...

Andy is at present doing the hard yards and chasing corporate sponsorship. If you can help out or just want to learn more get in touch via Twitter or his website. I am amped for this epic to start!

I had the honour of presenting to the society in 2009 following my source to sea paddling descent of the Amazon River, so to be invited a second time is humbling. My Amazon lecture attracted a large audience, filling the 750 seat Ondaatje Theatre to capacity and then some. An indication more, I think, of the lure of the Amazon than the story I had to tell.

To my Iran lecture, my ego would be well chuffed to attract an audience half that size, but my heart would crushed. An opportunity for me to open a window into an amazing country and it's people and one that would be lost to those who don't attend. Granted, talking about Iran may not have quite the same "adventure" quotient as the Amazon but the topic is an important one. What do you really know about Iran, beyond what is reported in the media? For most people, I would hazard very little. Having now spent almost 4 years researching the country, including walking more than 1000 miles across it's surface, I would like to think I know a little about the place and it is certainly a tale worthy of telling.

With new sanctions against the country activated this week, the latest IAEA report into Iran's nuclear activity just released and the spectre of war looming large, understanding the issue is, I believe of great importance, not just to those with their fingers on the buttons but to everyone.

Well, I made a week of keeping this site current. Phew! What a mission! Plenty more in store for next week. Have a great weekend wherever you might be lucky enough to be folks.

I have some sweet gear favourites for "Dig this gear" and clips for "Friday Stoke" piling up. I spent most of October wandering around Mount Kilimanjaro leading a couple of back to back charity groups on the mountain, experiencing the worst weather I have ever encountered on the peak (albeit, I have only summited 7 times but still, it was weather of note). On my return, I have been kept busy speaking for the Royal Geographical Society across the UK. In London City presenting regarding my walk across Iran and in Keswick and Brecon, "An Adventurer's Tales", outlining a few of the adventures that have brought me to the point where I currently stand on my journey as a pro adventurer. On the 5th December I am massively stoked to be once more presenting at the RGS headquarters in London. To stand on the stage of the Ondaatje Theatre with names like Burton, Speke, Livingstone and the like inscribed on the walls surrounding is kind of surreal and a huge honour.

I am 5 months post-op from my hip bone graft and clavicular open reduction internal fixation (screwing a titanium plate into my clavicle) and last week my physio was amped with my progress. So was I, until this week when I have been in a fair bit of pain. I wonder the level of sympathy that folks will have for me if I have rushed too soon into more aggressive conditioning? Not a lot I would imagine. Probably rightfully so. Fingers crossed it will settle down again soon. In the meantime my return to paddling will have to be delayed a little.

In a couple of weeks I am also excited to be attending my first ever RGS Explore weekend, the society's expedition and fieldwork planning event. Along with my mate, Dave Cornthwaite I am chairing the Rivers workshop over the weekend. It promises to be a fab few days with a lot of the usual suspects from the UK based adventure and expedition world lurking around the halls of the RGS from the 18th to the 20th of November. If you are planning an expedition and need some advice, information and a healthy dose of inspiration then be sure to get along.

In December it has become necessary for me to don a "lounge suit" (an outfit which I have been reliably informed does not include board shorts and flip-flops) for an event that I hope will be a bit of a blast. Etiquette (real or imagined by me) prevents me from revealing exactly what it is but hopefully I will fill you in in the aftermath.

Right, since I have broken my run of "no words" I will endeavour to keep things rolling on into Christmas and the New Year with some interesting stuff to keep you amused.

Tom says, "Cyclng into Armenia during one of the coldest winters for a generation was a minus-thirty-degree kick in the teeth. But a kindly soul in Yerevan gave me this matching drinks-can stove and tin mug set to help keep me warm. I was blown away by both the generosity and the fact that it could boil a mug of water in less than five minutes on nothing more exotic than medical alcohol! It's not available in stores, but you get a free G&T if you decide to make your own..."

If you have a piece of gear that has become indispensable on your outdoor adventures, let me know and it might feature as part of an upcoming, "Dig this gear".

While some folk are able to assuage the feelings of uselessness when injured by following other people on their quests, I find that for the most part it just pisses me off! Some of the more recently annoying journeys that have conspired to anger me as I stare out my office window are below*.

- Yakutat to Gustavus Coast Trip - bikes and packrafts on the Alaskan Coast (similarly, Al Humphreys' folding bike and packraft adventure through the Shetland Islands). Thanks Andy!

- Dave Cornthwaite SUP boarding the Mississippi River

- Ben Collins and his account of walking in the North West Highlands of Scotland. The photography is beautiful!

- Rich Harpham and his Big 5 Kayak Challenge in Alaska for yet more paddling. Brilliant!

*Kidding! I am amped to read about all these interesting journeys taking place and it keeps my stoke topped up as I battle through rehab and back to full health. Did that sound believable?

Now being back in London and a little more connected, my social calender is a little more full (in relative terms only. I ain't no social butterfly). More time on trains, tubes and buses. The deadness of travelling on public transport I am sure is familiar to all.

Unfortunately, for the most part, unless you want to be that crazy guy who tries to strike up a conversation with everyone during rush hour you need something to do. Reading Metro, The Sun or News of the World might pass the time but that just brings you closer to death in the end (not to mention shaving off a few IQ points each time). Fortunately my ASUS Eee Pad Transformer can help me out here.

With just a single arm at my disposal carrying and reading a book or going through an article I have printed out is not really practical at the moment. With my Transformer I can do a bunch of things that is not just "killing time". In the last couple of weeks I have sat on buses and trains and for once was actually productive. Sometimes it just means having the ability to brainstorm an idea that pops into my head. Using the Evernote app means this is a cinch and one handed typing on the touch screen is super easy. Viewing a 113 page PDF article, "Warfighting" courtesy of the US Marine Corps is super easy and with a single finger swipe I can read through without any trouble at all using the MyLibrary app.

Of course I know sometimes you just want to chill. That's why I have become pretty darn good at Samurai II: Vengence and AirAttack HD. Something I can do with one arm at least. Or you could just keep reading that old copy of the Metro you picked up off the carriage floor...

Don't forget, Asus is giving away a bunch of Transformers to a few lucky folks. All you have to do is leave a comment on any of the posts here. Positive, negative it doesn't matter. Call me a plonker if you like, you still get entered in the draw to win!

Tomorrow at 0700 hours I will find myself in the orthopedic outpatient waiting room at UCL Hospital, London, wondering when they will come fetch me for surgery. They will eventually arrive and I will in vain try to prevent the always too small hospital gown exposing far too much of my behind. A jovial chap will boot me up with a general anesthetic and as I count backwards from 10 everything will fade to black. A second later my eyes will open and I will be in the recovery room, still pleasantly high with my arm strapped to my body. In the interim I will have undergone a Clavicular ORIF with hip bone graft procedure. Say what? The docs will cut open my shoulder, remove a screw already in there, take some bone from my hip, grind it to a paste, fill in a hole, screw down a titanium plate and stitch me back up. Easy.

The above image gives you a bit of an idea of the operation. As briefly as possible - in March last year I had a full shoulder reconstruction and after 5 months was back in fighting form. No problems. In September, while kayaking in France I skillfully allowed the same shoulder to come into heavy contact with a rock in the middle of the river (did I mention I was upside down at the time?). This error resulted in a clavicle fracture just inside of the screw from my recon. Sling for a few weeks, a bit of rest and back to kayaking, grappling and conditioning. A bit painful but ok considering. A month ago the pain in my shoulder increased markedly. Therapy helped a little. X-rays showed no new fracture. I suspected a tear of some sort. A shot of cortisone into the joint provided some relief. 10 days ago I was finally able to see the surgeons who conducted my reconstruction. Bad news. The clavicle fracture did not heal properly resulting in a non-union. Only option is above surgery. 3-4 weeks in a sling and minimum 4 months till return to activity. Oh my f**K!

Unfortunately, this means my planned 4000 mile descent of the Missouri-Mississippi River and the next river as part of my 7 rivers, 7 continents project will not happen this year. Due to seasons and river flow I must delay my departure until May 2012, a scant 11 months away. To say I am bummed is an understatement (I won't go into details). Sorry for letting you down folks.

Have an awesome Bank Holiday/Memorial Day weekend folks!