Robert Zubrin of the Mars society suggested that a human Mars mission could begin first with a return vehicle being sent to Mars. As the soil is full of OH, the return vehicle could be sent without fuel, then liberate hydrogen from the soil and fuel up before humans arrived. If I remember correctly, a shelter might be sent unmanned first. Given the capabilities of unmanned missions, I think that a one-way robot approach makes a lot of sense. We could establish a landing site, and reduce the risks before humans even arrived.
Reminds me a scifi short story I read years and years ago about a guy who illegally transports a dying man to the moon and leaves him there to die. The man is the guy who made space exploration possible, but whose health was too poor to send him in space. Anyone remember a story like that? (Couldn't find it after 5 furious minutes googling).
Love this poem from that story : Under the wide and starry sky
Dig the grave and let me lie:
Glad did I live and gladly die,
And I laid me down with a will!
This be the verse you grave for me:
Here he lies where he longed to be;
Home is the sailor, home from sea,
And the hunter home from the hill.