Blind Mountaineers Use HP Technology

Erik Weihenmayer works with one of the students on trekking skills at the May training session.

Getting off the plane in Tibet, mountaineer Erik Weihenmayer could feel the excitement in the air. It was May 2004 and his first trip back to the Himalayas since he reached the summit of Mount Everest in 2001. Now it was time to give back to a place that had given him so much. Weihenmayer's mission: Train a group of local students for an expedition in late September 2004 to the summit of Lhakpa Ri - a spectacular, 23,000-foot (7,000 meter) Himalayan peak just north of Mount Everest.

The difference between this Himalayan adventure and others? Weihenmayer and the six Tibetan teens he will lead are blind.

"Although the mountains are the setting for our journey, it isn't our purpose to make future climbers out of blind Tibetan teens," says Weihenmayer. "We want to give them an enriching experience to elevate their own expectations and help shape their roles as future leaders."

By donating three Photosmart digital cameras, an iPAQ Pocket PC, a ruggedized notebook computer and cash to the project, HP is helping to spread this story of courage, strength and hope.

Climbing by sound and touch

The entire team celebrates a successful training.

A degenerative eye disease took Weihenmayer's sight at age 13. He adjusted by devoting himself to excelling at the things he loved, including mountain climbing. Weihenmayer was the first blind person to reach the summit of Mount Everest, at over 29,000 feet (8,848 m). According to a 2001 Time magazine cover story featuring Weihenmayer, 90 percent of the people who attempt Mount Everest don't complete the journey.

Weihenmayer points out that climbing relies heavily on sound and touch, like the sound an ice axe makes when it hits healthy blue ice versus rotten white ice or the feel of a rock face under his fingertips.

Since Everest, he has accomplished another personal goal, reaching the Seven Summits - the highest peaks on all seven continents.

When Weihenmayer told his personal story of courage at a recent HP Winner's Summit - a meeting for top sales achievers - he earned one of the highest scores ever recorded for an outside speaker. The overwhelmingly positive response from attendees helped earn Weihenmayer a commitment from HP to help support an upcoming climb.

Six teenagers

The six teens Weihenmayer will lead attend Braille Without Borders, the only school for the blind in Lhasa, Tibet.

Many in the Tibetan culture believe that blindness is punishment for failings in a previous life. Others believe blind people are possessed by demons. Before the school opened, many blind children had been locked away or abandoned by their families. Now these students navigate city streets by themselves, study three languages - Chinese, English and Tibetan - and bravely reach out for new experiences.

Conquering Lhakpa Ri

Photographer Didrik Johnck uses his satellite phone and HP notebook to send messages.

Lhakpa Ri is higher than any mountain outside of Asia. The team has reserved the option of choosing another mountain if conditions aren't favorable at Lhakpa Ri, but Weihenmayer believes Lhakpa Ri is achievable. "We are doing something called an Alpine climb, where you change camps every day, moving 1,000 feet (305 m) up the mountain each day so we will have a real simple acclimatization," he says. "Base camp will be at 17,000 feet (5,180 m), and advanced base camp is at 21,000 feet (6,400 m). Lhakpa Ri shares both camps with Everest," he says. "Base camp is right at

Others making the climb include the founder of Braille Without Borders, Sabriye Tenberken, who also is blind, seven members from Weihenmayer's Everest team and Sherpas - the Nepalese support team. Yaks will help carry gear to advanced base camp.

A three-member film crew will capture footage for a documentary film to be released in theatres. The film will be produced by Steven Haft, whose film credits include Dead Poet Society.

"We hope our educational outreach through our film and website will bring well-deserved attention to Sabriye's school and training center," says Weihenmayer.

HP helps document trek

"As soon as we walked off the Air China flight in Lhasa, I heard all six kids outside the baggage area beating their canes against the glass wall divider. I knew we were in store for an energetic two weeks," says Erik Weihenmayer.

Professional photographer Didrik Johnck is in charge of keeping the expedition connected to the outside world. In the confines of his tent and with an HP notebook in his lap, Johnck will edit the day's media of still images, audio files, video clips and written dispatches. With solar panels powering all the equipment, he'll regularly upload the media via satellite phone to the team's website. To keep the blind audience tuned in, Weihenmayer and his team are using the iPAQ Pocket PC to record audio messages for posting on the website. The students will be encouraged to experiment with the HP equipment. At least one of the donated HP digital cameras will stay with the school following the trip.

HP's role

"This story is a wonderful example of how technology can impact and make a significant difference in the lives of our consumers," says HP's Carolyn Driscoll, director, Event Marketing. "Technology is removing barriers of communication and connecting these students to the world around them - while also helping them to believe that everything is possible."

"I think that intensity, resiliency and courage are part of the human makeup," says Weihenmayer. "Lots of people are capable of achieving really great things. They just need the opportunity."