working life behind a desk at Police Headquarters.

Tracking down white collar crime, he says, is a painstaking, sometimes wearying task that consists mainly of exhaustive computer analysis and "number crunching''.

This is possibly why he, and others who pursue largely sedentary jobs, look to their vacation time as a chance to seek out excitement.

And excitement for Pete Morgan means mountaineering -- the sport where the possibility of sudden death is never far away, where battling nature and the elements also means battling altitude sickness and the horrors of dehydration -- the sport, that for some, provides the ultimate thrill in living, literally, on the edge.

This year, he and Mr. Peter Ramsdale, who works for Bermuda Computer Services, climbed the highest peak in Bolivia, Mt. Hualua Potosi, which at 20,000 ft., is one of the loftiest of the Andes range. But unlike an expedition in the Alps, for instance, where the two mountaineers would have been just another couple amongst hundreds of climbers, they undertook this latest challenge in the knowledge that there was no back-up in the shape of mountain rescue teams.

"There are very few western people there and mountaineering hasn't developed in the way it has in other areas. So there's not much point in telling people you are going off. If you get into problems, you are on your own,'' says Mr.

Morgan. Well aware of the dangers, they have undertaken emergency medical courses at King Edward VII Hospital.

Obviously then, the majestic peaks of the South American Andes are not designed for beginners, and in fact, Pete Morgan's interest in climbing began as a teenager in his native Wales where the surrounding hills and mountains fed his appetite. At the age of 16, when he joined the Welsh police cadets, he became involved in the Outward Bound courses, where there was even more opportunity to climb.

Since his mountaineering activity in Bermuda was confined to the cliffs in St.

David's, ("the stone is too soft''), he has routinely visited New Hampshire to train on granite surfaces there.

Then, two years ago, he and three friends (including Peter Ramsdale) made their first trip to the Andes. That expedition, however, was plagued by bad weather.

"We spent most of the time sitting in our tents in the middle of raging snowstorms,'' he laughs.

They did manage to climb Mt. Mururata, at around 19,000 ft. but plans to climb the top peak had to be abandoned when a massive storm "pushed us off the mountain.'' But the desire to conquer Mt. Hualua Potosi would not go away. "Pete Ramsdale and I felt it was the ideal mountain for us. It's quite close to La Paz, the capital, and that's a big consideration in an area where transportation is so difficult. But more than that, it's a very beautiful mountain, and we figured 20,000 ft. was just the right height for us to tackle,'' he said.

So the plans were made. Not least of these is the expense, for as Pete Morgan points out, all the equipment, which for those starting at scratch, can reach $5,000, has to be purchased outside Bermuda. "Then we have to pay duty on it just to take it out of the Island again!'' he said.

Time was another factor and presented an additional problem for the travellers from Bermuda.

"Bermuda is at sea-level and we flew into La Paz, which is the highest airport in the world. In a matter of hours we had to adjust to an altitude of 14,000 ft., so the first week was spent in acclimatising ourselves. If you go too fast, you can kill yourself.'' Admitting that they both felt very sick for the first few days, "wondering why we were there, flat on our backs, feeling terrible and wishing we could go home again'', they moved to the foothills at the base of the mountain and worked their way up over a period of several days.

Their first climb was to the peak of Mt. Alpamayo, about 19,000 ft. and, as the perfect weather held, they moved on to Mr. Hualua Potosi.

"There was hardly any snow. In fact, we had the ideal for mountaineering, which is a layering effect of a light fall each night, which prevented the ice from getting too brittle.'' The assault on the mountain was a two-day one, with the final push taking place from the base camp at 17,000 feet.

"For the climb to the peak, we left the camp at about four in the morning so that we could be on the ice as early in the day as possible, before the sun got to it and so that we could see the sun rise over the peaks, which is an incredible sight.'' At that level they needed lots of calories (and water, to prevent dehydration), so most of their food was specially dehydrated. He explained: "It wasn't very appetising and I lost 10 pounds. But we did take a couple of cases of Mars and Snickers bars from Winter Cookson to vary our diets!'' Armed with a head torch and ice axes, the two roped themselves to each other to begin the ascent.

"We are very safety-conscious. Even if we were within 20 feet of the summit and we felt it was unsafe, we would turn back. And we were always roped to each other because of the crevasses. You are constantly walking over snow ridges and it is very easy to fall in one, so you have to put your faith and trust in your partner to get you out of it,'' he said.

And how did Pete Morgan feel at the moment when he finally stepped on to the very top of Bolivia's highest mountain? "Well, it's hard to describe. The whole thing is a physical and mental endurance test. At the time, when even ten steps become a massive effort, you wonder why on earth you are doing it. But on the top of the mountain, you have an overwhelming feeling of accomplishment. And one of the thrills is the panoramic scenery from that height. The world is clearly different from that altitude and it gave us a great respect for the elements.'' Not that this latest achievement has satisfied the lust for scaling snowy heights. Already, there are tentative plans afoot for another trip, this time to Chile and Argentina, to tackle the mountains of Patagonia.

ON TOP OF THE WORLD -- Det. Con. Pete Morgan surveys the peaks of the Andes where he climbed Mt. Hualua Potosi, the highest mountain in Bolivia.