Blind man to thru-hike with talking GPS and no dog.

[Dances with Mice]

I got twenty bux that sez he'll reach Maine and Mt K.

And if I'm wrong it'll be the first time, won't it?

[MOWGLI]

I see....where can one read this interview? I would volunteer for the job....it aint like I got anything else going on next year....but hiking. We would make a great team.....A blind guy and a crazy ex-Jarhead!

You can listen to it at the link below. But mind you, he's not soliciting folks to come and help him. You seem to have a big heart Just a Hiker. Listen what he says when I ask him about help and mention Mt. Moosilauke. http://americanhiking.chattablogs.co...es/062072.html

Excuse me if it has already been mentioned here, but he could probably just follow the smell.

Very good! There is some truth to that.

[Just a Hiker]

[quote=MOWGLI16;434462]You can listen to it at the link below. But mind you, he's not soliciting folks to come and help him. You seem to have a big heart Just a Hiker. Listen what he says when I ask him about help and mention Mt. Moosilauke. http://americanhiking.chattablogs.co...es/062072.html


I listened to the interview, and from what I get from it he really wants to rely on the GPS and audio tapes. I think he really wants to show just how independent blind people can be; however, he states he'll take assistance along the way. I don't think he wants an actual hiking partner, but if he does start on March 1st, he'll have plenty of assistance.

[Marta]

... Also, we should not underestimate his capabilities of utilizing his other senses for finding his way much more effectively than a sighted person.

Last winter I ended up hiking way after dark, with an almost-dead headlamp. It was winter, so the leaves were off the trees and the underbrush had been beaten down by snow, which had since melted away. I was surprised to find that I could immediately tell if I had stepped off the Trail by the sound and feeling of my feet on the ground. As several other people have pointed out, this man probably has much more accutely developed his other senses.

And I think that he will be flooded with offers of help, possibly even more than he'll need or want.

[Pirate]

Save your time and money, stay at home. Forget about hiking the AT. Start with something easier like the CNO Canal Trail. If you are blind, you could not read this anyway.

[Just a Hiker]

Last winter I ended up hiking way after dark, with an almost-dead headlamp. It was winter, so the leaves were off the trees and the underbrush had been beaten down by snow, which had since melted away. I was surprised to find that I could immediately tell if I had stepped off the Trail by the sound and feeling of my feet on the ground. As several other people have pointed out, this man probably has much more accutely developed his other senses.

And I think that he will be flooded with offers of help, possibly even more than he'll need or want.

This point has been made a few times and it's a good one. My brother-in-law is totally blind, but his other senses or so keen that it is spooky sometimes. This guy will be okay, he'll need some help, but he'll be fine, and I hope to run into him next year.

[Tin Man]

And I think that he will be flooded with offers of help, possibly even more than he'll need or want.

Yes, I hope he has an effective way for dealing with this potential issue so as to politely turn help away when he doesn't desire it and get the help he will need when the terrain becomes difficult.

[Tin Man]

Save your time and money, stay at home. Forget about hiking the AT. Start with something easier like the CNO Canal Trail. If you are blind, you could not read this anyway.

Now that is helpful.

[Programbo]

Keep in mind he has his walking stick which he probably uses more effectively than we can imagine.

How`s he going to be "tapping the ground thousands of times an hour" and use his trekking poles as well?

Obviously I`m just poking fun at trekking poles

[Jester2000]

. . .I have spent three days on the trail in Maine without seeing anyone.

That's just 'cause everyone else knew where you were.

A bit condescending...
I just noticed this statement.

If you only just noticed it, you weren't offended.

Bowing silently to MOWGLI once again. . .

If you do it silently, blind people won't notice.

Aren't you glad that others didn't define for you what was possible or impossible?

I let physics do that.

[Mags]

T

If you only just noticed it, you weren't offended.

No. That's not the case. But thanks for telling me how I think and feel.

(I normally skip over the MS diatribes. I noticed his statement in follow up replies that other people wrote. Don't ASSUME. We all know what that spells. ).

[dessertrat]

This is what I worry about for him, too. Image Mount Madison with your eyes closed even without any wind. Could you get up even Mt. Albert blindfolded? Mahoosuc Notch? Very short people have to just drop or slide in a lot of places. It's not a matter of being tough and persistant but a matter of it just being possible or not possible. I can't rock climb like a lot of people can, no matter how much I want to. Everyone has limits at some point.

Since he is now saying that he is willing to accept help, he can certainly make it, but he probably still doesn't realize how much help he will need if his only experience is in the Shenandoah National Park.

You're preaching to the choir. . . isn't it digusting to have two people agree with each other.

I don't want to sound too negative on the guy, but you bring up a really good point. Most sighted people know that they can let themselves drop a certain distance when descending something. How will he know?

[Sly]

He'd probably fall off McAffe Knob or Tinker Cliffs.

[Dakota Dan]

JR, my nephew, has a GPS linked to a laptop computer that talks to you. I'll not let him in my car with the thing until gas goes back to a buck a gallon, lot of trouble and extra miles to boot.

I wish the guy all the luck in the world, but if I was him I'd have a good service dog carry the spare batteries for me.

[warren doyle]

Orient Express = 1 GPS = 0

[Rough'Tuff]

Somebody has to be first. Hoping whatever problems he finds get solved.

He won't be ther 1st blind hiker to do it. Bill Erwin already BTDT. He would be the 1st without a guide dog. I'm with Sly on that. He would be better off with a dog. I wonder if he's talked to Bill Erwin about his plan.

[Uncle Silly]

He'd probably fall off McAffe Knob or Tinker Cliffs.

Why would a blind man even go out to an overlook??

[Appalachian Tater]

He won't be ther 1st blind hiker to do it. Bill Erwin already BTDT. He would be the 1st without a guide dog. I'm with Sly on that. He would be better off with a dog. I wonder if he's talked to Bill Erwin about his plan.

He doesn't use a guide dog. A guide dog would be no more useful to him than it would be to you.

[Flush2wice]

Why would a blind man even go out to an overlook??

Photo op?

[Tin Man]

Why would a blind man even go out to an overlook??

To feel the air rise from the valley below; to listen to the sounds and smell the breeze; to experience many of the things that the sighted may not fully appreciate.