2007 Newsletters
Leading the Way Expedition... for Blind and Sighted Climbers
Sep 20th, 2007
Leading the Way Expedition... for Blind and Sighted Climbers
Battling rain, sleet and snow flurries at 13,000 feet in the Peruvian Andes, blind student Clayton Roper, age 16, reached his trekking poles in front of him, quickly tapping his way along the trail. Bell jingling in hand, his sighted guide Jack Knight, age 16, who played Erik in the A&E TV movie Touch the Top of the World, helped Clayton anticipate what is ahead. Following trails that existed since the time of the Incas, Clayton and Jack are members of a team of 22 blind and sighted high school students from the U.S. and Canada. On this 7- day trek, their goal is to reach an altitude of 15,600 feet!
Clayton has been blind since birth due to a genetic disorder called retinoschisis. Growing up in rural Appalachia, Clayton had very limited hiking experience prior to the trip. He was inspired to participate in this educational program by Erik, on whom he did a research paper in school. Erik serves as a trip leader on Global Explorers' blind/sighted programs by providing skills and expertise that the students practice throughout their experience.
Erik Weihenmayer describes the sighted/blind partnership this way: "When my friends are guiding me, I can hear how their voice(s) are projecting. So you’re not just blindly following and doing what someone else says, you have to be responsible for yourself. You have to know the risks because it is you that is stepping out there, not other people. That relationship and that communication between the blind and sighted person is really awesome, and it builds up a lot of trust."
Though Erik’s techniques got the team to camp on Day One, seven hours of high altitude hiking left the group totally exhausted. Clayton went to sleep without dinner. The altitude and the weather had pushed his limits. But kids are incredibly resilient. Whether planting trees for a day on steep, rocky slopes, hiking uphill for seven hours straight, or exploring ancient Inca ruins by moonlight, these kids always seem to push through their limits.
Prior to this experience, most of the sighted students had little experience leading blind students and many assumed it was going to be a lot more work than it was. Several days into the trek, what surprised the sighted students about guiding was how quickly they forgot that their partners were blind. Most blind students could walk for hours on relatively uneven terrain with little or no guidance. With changes in terrain (e.g. rocks, cliffs, rivers), though, guides and their partners would buckle down and focus, making sure each word and each step counted.
While it is the independence of blind people that most surprised the sighted participants, it is the freedom to test the boundaries of their independence that excites blind participants. As Clayton describes: "Through my entire experience in the Andes, there was one opportunity that I loved above all: the opportunity to experience freedom, the chance to run as fast as I could and not overly concern myself with my safety. For the first time in my life, I was not worried about people telling me to slow down and stop endangering myself and others. It was the best feeling I have had in my life! This feeling of absolute liberation was wonderfully empowering."
Days later at an altitude of 15,600 feet, the highest point of the climb, the entire team celebrated atop Rondoy Pass. Smiles were as broad as the Condors flying above. For Clayton, the lessons from the experience run deep:
"Growing up as a blind individual, I thought I would never get the opportunity to hike in the Andes, because even simple opportunities such as a job are difficult for someone like me to attain. The first life lesson I learned was that I am not alone as far as blindness is concerned. I learned that other people have to deal with the same difficulties that I do. Realizing that many others face the same hardships and adversities convinced me that my life was not as hard as I had thought it was.
Standing there with tears in my eyes, I finally had a more complete answer to the most common question we received prior to this expedition: 'Why would a blind student want to go all the way to the Andes if he can’t see it?'
The truth is, whether blind or sighted, most of us traveled to the Andes for the same reasons....for the adventure and challenge; to meet, interact and work side-by-side with people of a different culture; to experience the hustle and bustle of a local market; to feel the spiritual energy of an ancient land by touching the rocks that were laid by the Quechua hundreds of years ago; and to work together as a team towards a common goal. There is so much more to the experience along this trail than vision alone can capture.
We had set out to remind the world of the endless potential within each of us. We came away touched by the palpable landscape of the Quechua and forever inspired by the passion and determination of each other."
As Clayton put it, "If I could charge over mountain passes, only using two trekking poles and someone in front of me to see that I did not bust my head on a rock, then I could do anything despite what other people think I can or cannot do."
Global Explorers sends every student home with that feeling that they can do anything. And then we ask them to do it. As the culmination of the Global Explorers expedition, students complete a community service project in their home towns that draws on the lessons they have learned. At the conclusion of the program, Jack said that "this trek has opened my eyes to the world and made me want to make a difference in it." That’s exactly what Global Explorers wants to create, responsible global citizens who feel empowered to make a positive difference in the world.
David Shurna is the Executive Director of Global Explorers, the nonprofit organization that sponsored this program. You can contact him at: david@globalexplorers.org. 2008 blind/sighted programs include Machu Picchu, the Amazon Rainforest, Kilimanjaro, and the Grand Canyon, the expedition on which Erik will participate.Applications for 2008 programs are being accepted now.
Erik's Climb Calls Attention to TPL's Purchase of Wilson Peak Access
The most common access to Wilson Peak, a prominent 14er near Telluride in the Colorado Rockies, is being threatened by a private landowner's plans to begin gold mining operations. This would have a devastating impact on the nearby environment and severely limit public use of the land. The Silver Pick Gold Mine, which was established in 1882 and operated as recently as 1961, had 8,000 feet of operating tunnels and a mile-long aerial tram.
Fourteeners are the symbol of Colorado's majesty. 75% of the land in the U.S. at 10,000' or above is in Colorado, including 54 peaks at 14,000' or more. Wilson Peak is one of the most recognized peaks in the State; its profile is often used as a symbol of the Colorado mountains.
After years of negotiation, the Colorado office of the Trust for Public Land (TPL) obtained an option agreement to buy the 220 acres that provide the key access - the Silver Pick Trail - to Wilson Peak, Mt. Wilson, and El Diente. Acquisition of this property has been a high priority of the US Forest Service. TPL was successful in convincing the owner to sell the property which is valued at $3 million. The sale is expected to be finalized next month.
Erik felt privileged to be invited by TPL to do a climb which would draw attention to access issues, and help raise money for the purchase. "Access is actually what made me move to Colorado from Phoenix. In Colorado there’s a collective value about public land access, recreation, fitness and quality around the mountains."
By generating publicity about the land transfer, Erik hopes to create interest to open up other areas of privately held land. "I want to create a positive domino effect. There are many other access issues in Colorado and elsewhere. It’d be scary if these sorts of American landmarks become privately owned and off limits to the public. I don’t want the domino effect to go the other way: One peak closes, then two, then three, four and five. I want Colorado to be able to offer permanent access. The word permanent is key. Articles appeared in the Alpinist, Outside.com, Rock & Ice, National Geographic Adventure, Denver Post, to mention a few. And Dan Tishman - head of the New York real estate empire and builder of the World Trade Center - and his wife Sheryl, who own a major property in the area, hosted a reception after the climb for local residents and the press.
Since 1972, the Trust has worked nationally with willing landowners, community groups, and national, state, and local agencies to complete more than 3,000 land conservation projects in 46 states, protecting more than 2 million acres. The TPL has helped states and communities craft and pass over 330 ballot measures, generating almost $25 billion in new conservation-related funding.
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