Man with local ties assists with improbable climb
Faith is a substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things unseen.
It can move mountains and in May 2023, faith led a blind man to the peak of Mount Everest.
An impossible feat for most, blind veteran Lonnie Bedwell – with the help of his friends Bryan Hill, Michael Neal and the rest of the Sightless Summits team – completed the final climb at 4 p.m. Monday, May 22 from Everest Camp 4 (which included a 3,000-foot ascension that took 13 hours and 35 minutes to cover just 1.1 mile).
A blind Navy veteran, Bedwell sat on top of the tallest mountain in the world.
“Your disability is a part of you, but it does not define you,” said Bedwell. “We are able to adapt and do so much more than we think if we simply work together. So, let’s get up and go live our lives to their fullest potential.”
“Sightless Summits”
When Knoxville native Bryan Hill met Michael Neal of Oregon – while climbing California’s Mount Shasta in 2020 – it was the beginning of a partnership that would not only soar to great heights, but provide a way to take others with them on their journey.
Their non-profit organization “Sightless Summits” was born with the mission to inspire and serve disabled veterans through project-based adventures. Neal met Bedwell after hearing about a blind man who planned to climb a mountain in Argentina and thought to himself, “It’s impossible for a blind man to do this.”
However, the idea led the two men to become best friends and later form the nonprofit with Hill.
“He’s just an amazing individual, but what is most amazing about Lonnie is he spends the bulk of his time helping and assisting directly to other blind veterans,” Neal said. “And it is, for me, super meaningful to be a small part of his impact in that community.”
Nothing can stop him
Bedwell was blinded in a hunting accident in 1997 – but he took the tragedy and turned it around becoming the 2015 National Geographic Adventurer of the Year.
He has climbed Denali, the highest and most remote mountain peak in North America. He has climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, Aconcagua and is the first blind man to climb Devil’s Tower in eastern Wyoming. He has kayaked the Batako Gorge below Victoria Falls and was the first blind man to run the 226-mile stretch of the Colorado River.
After completing Mount Everest, he is the fourth blind man to do so and the first blind man to summit the twin peaks of Everest and Lhotse back-to-back.
“We just did what a blind man could not do alone,” Bedwell declared.
After he received a call from the Blind Veterans Association – asking him to be a voice and encouragement for other disabled veterans – he began his training for Everest, which consisted of cardio and strength training, as well as walking up and down a 40-foot hill at his home in Indiana with a backpack and using the peloton provided by Sightless Summits.
Trek complete
There were times when the team clung to life on their journey to the peak.
It was hard. It was emotional. But they succeeded.
The conditions were rough, with extreme cold and gusting winds, falling ice and low oxygen levels due to the elevation.
There were times when the team literally walked past other climbers who had lost their journey to the top, but they continued to climb. This year has been the deadliest year on record for Everest climbers.
“You never know what will come of tomorrow, so be sure to make the most of every day,” Hill said.
“The patience these guys have to have as I trudged up the mountain because they are in so much better shape than I am physically,” Bedwell said.
He struggled with his oxygen mask. Hill lost 24 pounds and suffered from frostbite on his toe, but nothing could stop them. When they finally reached the top, the moment they had all worked so hard for – no one could see.
“It was snowing. It was windy and cold. We couldn’t see anything,” Hill recounted.
Hill has ties to Graham County. His parents – Keith Hill and Karen Millsaps Hill – were raised in Graham County and attended Robbinsville High School.
After college, they made their home in Knoxville, where Bryan and his sister grew up. The Hills now reside part time in the Santeetlah Shores Community.
A physical therapist, Bryan now calls his home Santa Cruz, Calif. When he began his plans for the Everest trip, he suggested that his parents make the trek to Base Camp.
“I can tell you that on the trek I struggled and had to work so hard to make every step in the high altitude,” Karen shared. “I felt sorry for myself and whined to myself. Then I looked up and saw Lonnie. I can’t even imagine doing this trek without my eyesight. Lonnie was and is such an inspiration to all. His attitude is always uplifting, and his sense of humor is impeccable.
“I was truly blessed to have been a part of this journey and am honored to call Lonnie Bedwell my friend.”
It was a something the team members will never forget, nor will they ever do again.
What’s next?
Sightless Summits is now planning to climb Mount Pisgah in Antarctica in December. Pisgah rises 1,860 meters in the North-Central part of the Imeon Range on Smith Island in the South Shetland Islands. The adventure is expected to cost $90,000 per climber.
The non-profit organization has amazing donors, but there is always an opportunity to help with expedition expenses. Bedwell is on a fixed income and relies on financial support for his challenges. Donations can be made at sightlesssummits.com, which make the mission to help and serve disabled veterans possible.
You can also read Lonnie’s story in his 2015 book, 226-Mile Grand Canyon Adventure, available on Amazon.