At an altitude of nearly 8,000 meters, in the "forbidden area of life", a team carrying a stretcher passed by a group of climbers, all with their heads bowed, and a corpse on the stretcher.
However, there was one climber in the team who did not know that he was so close to death because he was blind. A few days ago, the documentary "The Invisible Peak" was released, which recorded the 46-year-old blind Zhang Hong in Chongqing challenging to reach the summit of Mount Everest, which caused heated discussions on the Internet. Why did he challenge Mount Everest?What tests of life and death have they experienced?What's his next step?People's Daily Online spoke with the blind man who was the first blind person in China to reach the summit to understand the story behind the summit. 
Zhang Hong and his wife Xia Qiong took a group photo. Photo by Li CongchongInitial Intention:At the age of 40 and blind for 20 years, he decided to climb Mount EverestZhang Hong once practiced desperately Xi climbing stairs. Zhang Hong's residence is a 12-story dormitory building in Lhasa, which is more than 3,500 meters above sea level, and he will carry nearly 30 kilograms of lead each time, put on an oxygen mask, climb to the top of the building, and the elevator will come down more than 10 times each time, which is equivalent to climbing more than 200 floors. Zhang Hong is a native of Chongqing, and at that time he was working in Fukang Hospital affiliated to ** University. In the mind of his wife Xia Qiong, Zhang Hong was a very sunny and cheerful young man before he became blind. After being blinded by illness, her husband was decadent for a while, "I very much hope that he can come out of the haze." I heard that he wanted to practice mountaineering, and I supported him. The reason why Zhang Hong desperately climbed the stairs came from an ordinary party chat. At that time, the mountaineer Luo Ze talked about the past of mountaineering, and Zhang Hong listened to it with relish, and then asked: "Have any blind people climbed Mount Everest?"”
When I asked this question, my first reaction was embarrassment, thinking to myself how could I ask such a childish questionIt's impossible. What Zhang Hong said was that what he didn't expect was that Luo Ze gave him an affirmative answer, saying that an American named Eric Wihammel had climbed Mount Everest and that he was blind. "Are there any blind people in China who have climbed Mount Everest?Zhang Hong asked. Luo Ze paused and denied. "Maybe I can try it too. Zhang Hong said. Everyone laughed and thought he was joking. Ridicule:"Dreams are always out of reach, should I give up?”Just like the previous scene in this article, Zhang Hong really began to practice Xi. It was 2015, Zhang Hong was 40 years old at the time, and he had been blind for 20 years. Before the age of 40, he had never set foot in extreme sports, and he laughingly called himself a "little white". He started practicing on foot, and he didn't have the conditions to do systematic training, so he started from the most basic, got up at 4:00 in the morning to climb the stairs, went to work after practice, and came back in the evening to continue practicing. There are more than 200 floors per day, and it takes about 6 hours or more. This is an ordeal that ordinary people can hardly imagine. Unable to see with his eyes, Zhang Hong moved step by step on the ladder, stepping step by step. In addition to being tired, sleepy, and bored, he also encountered a basin of cold water and gossip: "Are you blind and still learn to climb the mountain?"Funny?For Zhang Hong, it was impossible to directly refute these gossips at that time. "I don't know the bottom of my heart, and I often ask myself, what are I practicing for?Zhang Hong said frankly: "After all, whether it can be done at that time is still a big question mark." "Want to climb Mount Everest?No money, no equipment, no logistics support team. Zhang Hong sighed and said that he had nothing but dreams at that time. "My family lives on the 5th floor, and a few times, I climbed to the top of the building out of breath, and I was hesitant to press the elevator button on the 5th floor, and I could go home and rest when I pressed it. Nothing, why practice?"Dreams always seem to be out of reach, should I give up?"Zhang Hong, if you give up like this, all your efforts will come to naught, and you will never have a chance again in your life. Zhang Hong persuaded himself, and his finger left the "go home" button. Departure:He used practical actions to refute those who ridiculed himDuring the National Day in 2015, Zhang Hong climbed to the top of the first snow peak in his life: Xuegula Peak. At an altitude of more than 5,000 meters, the peak is a training ground for beginner mountaineers. Zhang Hong participated in the mountaineering activities organized by the ** Autonomous Region Working Committee, he was in a surprisingly good state, and the guide guys went all the way up, and the first batch reached the peak. Standing at the top, the cold wind was howling, but Zhang Hong felt a sense of relief, "To exaggerate, it is to have a feeling of rebirth." I feel that mountaineering brings strength to my life. After reaching the summit of Xuegula Peak, Zhang Hong's confidence was greatly encouraged. "I thought, I want to be the first blind person in China to climb Mount Everest, Eric can, why can't I?The pace of his rush to the peak also began to gradually accelerate. At 6,010 meters above sea level, Luodui Peak at an altitude of 7,050 meters, Zhuomularikang Snow Mountain, and in 2019, he climbed Muztag Peak at an altitude of more than 7,500 meters. Zhang Hong used a series of practical actions to silence those who used to laugh at him. At this time, he never forgot the higher dream in his heart. "I have always felt that Mount Everest is far, far away from me, an invisible peak, an unattainable goal. But as I walked up to these snow-capped peaks step by step, especially at the summit of Muztag, I seemed to find that the dream of Mount Everest no longer seemed to be a dream. Zhang Hong said. Chongfeng:It has no special abilities, but it will charge into battleZhang Hong has deduced the scene of his arrival at the Everest base camp countless times in his heart, but when he actually arrived, he found that he was greeted by a harsher and more dangerous environment than before. In the previous mountaineering process, Zhang Hong had many brushes with death. For example, in the process of retreating after reaching the summit of Zhuomularikang, he almost stepped into an ice crack, and under the crack, there was an abyss. How is it possible for a blind person to climb Mount Everest?Do you want someone to carry it up?In fact, when a climber embarks on the road to the "vertical limit", there is no one who can really help physically. Mount Everest is not particularly merciful because Zhang Hong is blind, for him, he is at a "desperate altitude", and every mistake he makes here may end the journey to the peak, or even lose his life. During the preparation period of more than a month in the base camp, Zhang Hong not only practiced Xi climbing skills over and over again during the day, but also continued to practice every night Xi using equipment such as ascenders and putting on and taking off gloves, and practiced thousands of Xi, which gave him muscle memory. After sleeping in the middle of the night, he would still recall the day's training in his mind, trying to remember more of the glacier paths, and remember more of the length of the ice crevasses......"I didn't know that the mountains were in, the scenery was in. People who can see will say, you see the camp is in front of you, it's almost there, but I'm different, even if I get to the camp and the guide doesn't tell me to arrive, I don't know if it's time to stop. Zhang Hong sighed: "So, there was only one idea in my mind at that time, that is, I don't have to think about how far there is, I just need to move forward, as long as I take one more step, I will be one step closer to the goal." "I can't see the world, so let the world see me!Crisis:A life-or-death decision at an altitude of 8,700 metersIn the Everest base camp, climbers leave every day because they can't stand the cold and lack of oxygen, and they also hear stories of climbers killed from time to time. At 11 p.m. on May 19, 2021, Zhang Hong and his team began to march to the top of the world. At the time of departure, many of the climbers in the camp came out to practice for this blind brave man. A climber from Poland gave Zhang Hong a hug and told him in Chinese: "Climbing to the top is not the goal, going home is, you must be safe." "The road to the peak is not an easy one. When crossing the glacier, Zhang Hong, who is invisible, sometimes takes a few minutes or even more than ten minutes to step over the ice crack that others can cross in one step. Facing the invisible peak, Zhang Hong needs to face glaciers, cliffs, blizzards, severe cold, lack of oxygen and ...... in the darkHe could only judge the road ahead by the language of the guide, and when he stepped down, he stepped on a glacier or snowAhead is the bridge?Is it a cliff?Or is it a slope?He can't even control his center of gravity, so he can only slowly and tentatively step on it step by step, and then determine what to do next and how to distribute the center of gravity ......"A lot of people have asked me, aren't you afraid?Zhang Hong said bluntly: "In fact, every step of the mountain is terrifying for me. But you can only avoid fear if you face it head-on. Fear is actually something that we are afraid to face. When we confront it, the fear is gone. After four days of climbing, Zhang Hong and his team arrived at Camp 4 at an altitude of 8,000 meters and entered the real "death zone" - more than 90% of fatalities in the history of Everest climbing began here. After reaching an altitude of 8,700 meters, Zhang Hong is about to face the last hurdle before reaching the summit - the Hillary Steps. It is a rocky section only about 30 centimeters wide, flanked by cliffs, and usually only one person is allowed to pass through. Crisis hits: Due to the low temperature, the oxygen regulators of some members of the team froze and broke out, and the oxygen leaked out to be insufficient for everyone in the team to continue climbing. On this "vertical limit", without oxygen assistance, the average person may not be able to survive even 10 minutes. At the moment of life and death, the team decided to withdraw some of the personnel, leaving enough oxygen for Zhang Hong and the three Sherpa guides in the best condition to continue to the top. "When I heard that they were going to retreat, my first reaction was, 'I'll go down too.'" "My Chinese guide also has to retreat, and the remaining three Sherpa guides all speak English, and I can only understand the simplest words, such as 'go, up, stop', etc., which also makes me feel bottomless in terms of communication." Before saying goodbye, the Chinese guide nudged me in the direction of the summit and motioned me to continue upward. To this day, Zhang Hong still clearly remembers the words that the guide shouted to him in the storm: "For you, it may be this once in your life to reach the top." ”Climb to the top:When I heard cheers over the intercom, I realized that I was on top of the worldThis may be the longest climb of more than 100 meters in Zhang's life, and by the time he passes the Hillary Steps, his fitness has reached its limit. In the documentary, the director used a 45-second black scene and Zhang Hong's heavy wheezing sound to express this suffocating time. Zhang Hong said that for a long time, his mind was almost blank, and then, he felt unprecedented fear. During the most unbearable time, Zhang Hong touched the national flag on his right shoulder with his left hand, "I seemed to see the five-star red flag in the camp, and then I saw my lover saluting me in the camp, as well as the applause of my friends." I have talked to my lover countless times in my head, and she is still a young 20-year-old in my mind. After about 2 hours of "frightening", at about 9 o'clock in the morning on May 24, Zhang Hong successfully reached the top. But he didn't know that he was on top of the world, and he continued to move forward until he bumped into the backpack of the guide who was walking in front of him, and then heard cheers coming from the walkie-talkie. "I had thought about what to pose and how to take pictures after reaching the summit countless times, but in fact, my mind was blank at that time. Zhang Hong recalled that after the guide helped him take a simple photo, he urged him to retreat quickly. Because they also have to go through a more dangerous time than climbing - the time to retreat. "A lot of mountain disasters actually happened when they were retreating. Zhang Hong used "rolling and climbing" to describe his embarrassment, and he couldn't remember how many falls he fell. Finally, on the morning of May 27, Zhang Hong safely withdrew to the base camp. "The moment the guide took off my crampons, I felt truly safe. Zhang Hong said: "From the time I went up the mountain to the time I went down to the base camp, I didn't take off the crampons for about 8 days, because it was my life guarantee on the mountain." The moment I took it off, I felt that my nervous nerves relaxed, and I suddenly felt like crying. ”Future:I hope to help my disabled friends do more things within their ability"Our teacher Xia Boyu from Chongqing, he went to Mount Everest 5 times, from his 20s to his 60s, and it took more than 40 years to complete his dream. When asked about his feelings after reaching the summit, Zhang Hong turned a thousand words into one sentence: "In comparison, I think I am very lucky." In Zhang Hong's mind, mountaineering has brought him a second light. "Next year, I will also climb Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest peak in Africa. Talking about his next plans, Zhang Hong said that he will slowly take every step and strive to go higher and further. At the same time, he also said that he will participate in more charity projects to help disabled friends do more things within their ability, "I hope that this movie "Invisible Peak" can bring strength to more audiences and encourage everyone to try bravely and make their lives more exciting." *People's Daily Editor: Pan Wenchang Review: Zhang Xuefei, Zhang Zhengdan.