Climbing up the highest mountain in the world is no easy feat.

Now, imagine doing it with your eyes closed.


A 46-year-old blind man from China did exactly that and became the first blind person in Asia to scale Mount Everest!

What’s more amazing is the fact that Zhang Hong only took three days to scale the world highest peak from the Nepal side of the mountain!

Wow!

An amazing achievement

Zhang took to Twitter to share his feat.

"I summited Everest!"

"I would like to thank my family, my guides, the folks at Fokind Hospital, and @asiantrekking who have been extremely supportive of my journey,” he wrote on Twitter.

The report also quoted his interview with Reuters where he mentioned that anyone can do anything if they have a strong mind.

He also said that Erik Weihenmayer – a blind American mountaineer who successfully conquered Everest in 2001 was his inspiration to conquer the peak.

“Today I sit here and think about Eric, who inspired me to have such a dream and work all the way, and eventually I achieved it.

“So, I would think there are so many other visually impaired people around the world and also in Asia, and I hope what I did can be an inspiration for them,” he said.

Never giving up

Zhang shared that after the loss of his vision at 21 due to glaucoma, he was motivated and began training under his friend Qiang Zi, a mountain guide.

His training routine included carrying 30-kilogram weighted bags up the stairs of the Tibetan hospital where he works as a masseur as well as attempting to scale other shorter peaks in China.

He added that climbing Mount Everest was daunting but his resilience ensured he complete the climb.

"I was still very scared, because I couldn't see where I was walking, and I couldn't find my centre of gravity, so sometimes I would fall.

“But I kept thinking because even though it was hard, I had to face those difficulties, this is one component of climbing, there are difficulties and dangers and this is the meaning of climbing.”

Hats off to you, Zhang!