This, and only this, runs in your mind listening to a clutch of visually impaired and partially blind first time trekkers relating their experience from a recent expedition to a pass in Uttarkashi. Spearheaded by Jamshedpur-based Tata Steel Adventure Foundation, the nine-day expedition — to Dayara Bugyal Pass — in Uttarkashi early this month had 14 of its 20 members either completely blind or legally so. That all of them trekked up to the pass at 12,000 feet certainly knocks down some preconceived notions about the restrictive nature of vision impairment in people. Also how technology can help overcome some real ones, like it aided a visually impaired photography enthusiast to pursue his hobby throughout the expedition.

Credit goes to Atul Ranjan Sahay, a senior manager at Tata Steel in Jamshedpur, himself a partially blind. For Sahay, associated for many years with the Foundation headed by Bachendri Pal of the Everest fame, this is the seventh trek, including one of them to 18,000 feet. He says the idea hit his mind one day and on meeting approval from Bachendri and her brother Rajendra Singh Pal — also an Everester, he threw it to people on the mailing list of Access India, a platform for blind computer users in India to exchange information.

“There were 50-plus aspirants. It was a pleasant surprise. Things like physical fitness apart, we picked members for the expedition from among them keeping mental fitness in mind. In the mountains, while facing obstacles, people tend to give up. To complete an adventure expedition, you therefore require a lot of passion. Other than me, the rest of the 13 visually impaired members were first timers. Five among us were partially blind,” says Sahay. Six sighted members were roped in who hand-held the completely blind through the trek. Six of the visually impaired were women. The largest number of participants was from Delhi at five. Rest were picked from Karnataka, Uttarakhand, Bihar, Jharkhand, Haryana and Rajasthan. One was an Indian girl from Singapore.

Giving a detailed account of the trail, Sahay says soon after the selection, a Facebook page was created where began discussions among the members on how to ready themselves for the trek.

Interesting how high-rise living helped some in endurance training before reaching the base camp in Uttarkashi for more focussed physical and mental exercises. “Wearing my backpack and ankle weights, I did my initial training by climbing the stairs of my apartment building. I did 50 floors per week,” says Pranav Lal, one of the visually impaired expedition members from Delhi. The expedition began on October 3. They completed it on the 11th. “The first day itself made the first timers realise what to expect. When they reached the base camp after a long car journey, they were made to climb a 10-minute long steep incline in the dark,” relates Sahay. The trail began from Barchu on Gangotri Road. “We started from Barchu only at noon which was a mistake as weather can change after 2 p.m. in the mountains. A hailstorm started as soon as we began. By the time we reached Barnala at 9000 feet, it was nearly dark.”

Nikita Jain, yet another participant from Delhi, talks about the focussed training they underwent at the base camp under the guidance of four trainers led by Rajendra Pal Singh. “We were asked to walk on bricks. It was tough for a visually impaired person.” Being partially blind, Nikita followed a sighted trekker throughout the expedition. So did Sahay. The completely blind, like Pranav, had to be handheld. Relates Pranav, “Since I had a special hiking pole in my left hand, I could support my sighted escort when needed. I was holding my escort with my right hand and I am sure he must have saved my life many times during the trip.” The trip was special for Pranav also because he could pursue his hobby of photography. “I am one of the few people in India who uses a camera that has an artificial eye. It has a sound schemer which sends sensations to the brain, like an eye does, and thereby letting the user know what is the composition of a particular scene. For example, its volume represents brightness. So if there is bright sunshine, the sound schemer alerts the user by causing a lot of sound. Different sounds relay to the brain different things, a stream, a mountain, trees, etc. It helps me to imagine things and click photographs.”

Sahay explains how he felt a difference at 12,000 feet. “It is the air, so fresh that you know you have reached a good height. Sighted or not, it is ultimately the feeling. Also, when the sighted team members talked about what they saw, it helped me enrich my experience. Dayara Bugyal is a lush meadow, you can literally roll on it,” he says with a laugh.Though the target of the expedition was Dayara Bugyal the enthusiasm of the group saw them reach the Bugyal Pass. Sahay knows why they could do it. “Because they overcame fear of the unknown.Told you!

Fear is the biggest enemy of mankind. An expedition like this takes fear out of you and helps you rise to your optimal level