Mountaineer Alan Hinkes returned to the UK today after securing his place in the record books as the first Briton to conquer the world's 14 highest peaks - joking that it was time he took up ballroom dancing.

The 51-year-old former schoolteacher has spent the last 18 years on a personal quest to conquer all 14 of the world's 8,000m-plus (26,247ft-plus) peaks - a challenge he finally completed last month.

Hinkes, from Northallerton, North Yorkshire, is one of only 13 people in the world to have achieved the feat, conquering the peaks which stand in the so-called ''death zone'' in which humans can only live for a few days because of low oxygen levels.

On May 30 he finally completed his personal ''Hinkes' Challenge 8,000'' quest by conquering Kangchenjunga in Nepal after surviving what he described as the worst Himalayan weather conditions in living memory.

The 8,587m (28,172ft) summit has twice eluded him - once in 2000 when he was forced to turn back because of deep snow only to suffer a broken arm when a snow bridge collapsed on his descent, and again in 2003 when he retired feeling unwell.

After returning to London's Heathrow airport today, Mr Hinkes spoke of his relief at finally completing his quest, something he said meant he would not have to face any more near-death experiences.

He said: ''If you cut me in half it says mountain climbing, I'm like a stick of rock.

''I will always be in mountains all my life, I don't have a death wish and I have had a few near-death experiences, particularly on Kangch. ''I will be happy just 'bimbling' around the Lake District.''

On his latest and successful attempt on Kangchenjunga, Mr Hinkes was accompanied by his Nepalese friend Pasang Gelu who turned back just short of the peak.

Mr Hinkes joked: ''Perhaps he has a bit more sense than me.''

But after climbing to the top just before dark he was faced with making his descent in a heavy blizzard with avalanches all around him and pitch black conditions.

But beforehand Mr Hinkes observed his personal ritual of posing for a picture, which he took by holding a camera at arms length, holding a snapshot of his daughter Fiona, 21, and grandson Jay, two.

Mr Hinkes' personal quest has spanned most of Fiona's life and, on one occasion, he even named a previously unnamed mountain in Kyrgyzstan after Fiona.

Describing his descent, he said: ''I came back down on my own in a snowstorm, in a blizzard, which was a tad traumatic to say the least.

''I have done a lot of night exercises, not only on mountains but with the Royal Marines. I'm a Marine reservist so I'm used to working in the dark, but being at the top of the third highest mountain in the world I must admit I had a bit of a panic attack about half an hour from the summit, I started shaking and hyperventilating.''

He said that he also feared that Pasang had died because the heavy snowfall had obscured his tracks.

Pointing to his grandson Jay, he said: ''I thought I've got to survive because this little creature might need me and Fiona wanted me back.''

But he added: ''I did relish it thinking this really is the real thing, it isn't an exercise, so in a bizarre, masochistic way I really relished it, I just got on with the job.''

But considering life after completing his quest, Mr Hinkes joked: ''Life is going to be a bit different for a while, maybe I should take up ballroom dancing because they don't have blizzards in ballroom dancing.''