A retired business executive’s return to his outdoor-sports dreams of youth, including climbing the world’s highest mountains
and cross-country ski racing.
COMING APRIL 2026
From Brandeis University Press
About Tom
Tom French is a lifelong mountaineer, cross-country skier, and lover of the outdoors. A Senior Partner Emeritus of McKinsey & Company, he is currently Chairman of the Trustees of Reservations, a Director of Corning Incorporated, and a member of several other nonprofit boards. Tom has written widely on business issues. The Gap Years is his first non-business book. He lives outside of Boston with his wife Jill.
About The Gap Years
At the end of 2019, Tom French retired from a four-decade career in business, determined to return to interests that had defined his youth and see what meaning they still held. One of these interests was mountaineering. Another was adventure travel, with a particular focus on Nepal. A third was cross-country ski racing…
Praise for The Gap Years
The Gap Years is engaging, exciting, and revelatory - an adventure story that will take the reader to some of the remotest places in the world and yet remains grounded in the more familiar terrain of the human heart.
—Nathaniel Philbrick, Bestselling author of In the Heart of he Sea, Mayflower, and Travels with George
It's not too late for extraordinary adventure! Tom French makes a compelling case... trying hard things when you're older offers different rewards than in one's youth...
—Bill McKibben, author of Long Distance, and founder Third Act
“An inspiring and thrilling account of a quest to fulfill the dreams of youth and summit the most challenging mountains of the world... A story not just about the power of determination, but more importantly about the restorative power of the outdoors.”
—Nicole Zussman, President and CEO of the Appalachian Mountain Club
…Tom French embarks on a profound journey that resonates with anyone who has ever felt the pull of their passions amidst the demands of life… This inspiring exploration of aging, adventure, and self-discovery reminds us that it is never too late…
—Wendell Weeks, Chairman and CEO of Corning
“Tom takes us on an inspiring journey and so much more in his beautifully written book. He has penned a mountain climber’s white-knuckle thriller all the while closely examining the arc and purpose of life. To read it is to be moved!”
—James Gorman, Chairman of The Walt Disney Company, former CEO of Morgan Stanley
…The Gap Years is a tremendous adventure story and vibrant travelogue. It is also a poignant… insight into one manʼs efforts to balance family and occupational commitments with a lifelong passion...
—John Morton, author of A Medal of Honor and Sports and Life, multi-time Olympian
Photo Galleries
Cholatse
Everest
Makalu Barun
Additional Climbs
Skiing
Click on any gallery to view images
Latest Posts
New Zealand Tramping
Two years ago, in November 2023, I returned from climbing Cholatse in Nepal. That climb had been a bit of “bonus expedition,” on top of the many climbs, including Everest, that I did during my self-proclaimed “gap years” in 2020-2022. The past two years have been filled, happily, with serving on boards, skiing, sailing, day hiking in the mountains of New England, and writing a…
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Summit Musings
I am now back in Kathmandu. When I last posted on November 7, Holly had just left the Cholatse expedition and the rest of us were gearing up for our attempt on the summit. In a typical component of high altitude mountaineering, we were eying the weather forecast waiting for the winds to drop. It looked like there would be a 24 hour weather window…
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Base Camp and Camp One
When I last posted, I was getting ready to trek to Cholatse base camp to meet Holly and our climbing team. I just needed to find the camp. Expedition Leader Phil Crampton had been a bit cryptic about its location, but assured me I would locate it. His basic directions: “look for the yak huts and head up the valley toward the mountain”. I pulled…
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