Michael Smith, 33, from Finsbury Park in north London, was guided by his work colleague, Jack Stacy, 38, who lives in London Bridge, across 24 peaks over 24 hours to raise money for SeeAbility, a charity offering support for those living with sight loss and mark the charity’s 225-year anniversary.
The duo faced rain and heavy fog over the weekend to reach the summit of 24 mountain peaks in the Lake District, including England’s highest peak Scafell Pike, covering around 28 miles and ascending a total of 12,000ft (3,657.6m).
Mr Smith had to rely on Mr Stacy’s guidance which involved creating their own verbal commands to help him navigate difficult terrain and holding onto Mr Stacy’s rucksack, shoulder or arm to hike for 12 hours each day summiting nine peaks on Saturday and the other 15 peaks on Sunday.
“We’re over the moon that we’ve done it,” Mr Smith said.
“It was incredibly challenging and emotional at times. Jack had the hardest job in many ways as he had to plant his feet and then tell me where to plant mine, and he had to keep that up every step of the way.”
Mr Smith, who lives with Leber’s hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) – which is an inherited condition causing sight loss in the central part of the eyes, lost his sight more than a decade ago and now lives with around 10% vision and described the challenge as “pretty emotional”.
