Freezing cold morning heralded January 12 when I set out for my round-the-world solo challenge, writes Polly Vacher.

I had the shivers, not only because it was cold, but also because I had the honour of being escorted by an RAF Harrier for my departure from Birmingham International Airport, and I was terrified of messing up the formation!

Polly VacherThis was the culmination of two years of meticulous planning. I had done a course on Jungle and Desert Survival - in the Lake District! I had done a ditching and dunking course where I was placed in an aircraft cockpit, craned over a huge pool and dropped in.

With all this behind me, I set out in my little Piper Dakota, a single-engine aircraft with a cockpit about the size of the inside of a Mini. The co-pilot's seat was taken up with a life-raft, and any other space was occupied by my meagre clothes allowance and maps and charts and, of course, the computer, to enable me to send reports and pictures to the website.

UntiI reached Jordan, I never saw the ground or sea over which I flew. Everything was masked by a thick layer of cloud. This was one of the most hazardous features of the whole flight. Cloud is moisture, and if the temperature is below zero, the moisture quickly turns into ice. Ice forming on the air frame and propeller is one of the deadliest problems besetting a light aircraft with no de-icing facilities.

Jordan was an important stop. Her Majesty Queen Noor is patron of The Royal International Air Tattoo Flying Scholarships for the Disabled, which I was raising funds and awareness for through my flight.

I flew over the Saudi Arabian desert to Dharan where I was given an amazing welcome by the University of Dharan. The flight across India to Thailand and Malaysia afforded me a myriad of wonderful views of the Indian desert, the Indian Ocean, and the jungles of Myanmar in Burma. My route took me through several Indonesian Islands.

The coast of Australia heralded the halfway mark. Here I was greeted by my husband and friends who escort me into Darwin in an identical aircraft.

Once I reached Australia there was suddenly nothing shielding me from the mighty Pacific. Paralysing fear crept in as the time for departure approached.

I was held up for a week because of a cyclone in New Caledonia. Once this subsided, I hopped from one tiny island to another. I was busy taking photographs when the engine stopped. I had run my extra fuel tank dry. I quickly changed on to another fuel tank, but for the seconds it took me to do that, I was filled with fear at the thought of only the mighty ocean to land on. The sight of the American mainland was a joy to behold.

On I flew over the Rockies where I was thrown around the sky by turbulence created by this massive mountain range.

The final big challenge was the North Atlantic. Here I had to contend with icing conditions, and the thought of the fearful conditions if my engine were to fail over this desolate area. It was an amazing experience flying down the fjords of Greenland, and sample the beauty of the icecap.

As I landed in Wick in Scotland, I was moved by the relief at reaching "home", and the sadness at everything being nearly over. My thoughts went to all those who had so admirably and stoically supported this venture. My family, my friends, my wonderful committee, the British Women Pilots' Association, my many commercial sponsors, including Jeppesen, Shell and Birmingham International Airport and all who had paid to have their name on my wing.

Above all this I always had the overwhelming knowledge that I was being guarded by a much greater power.

**For more information visit www.worldwings.org.