Jennifer Doherty: Blind woman conquers Everest Base Camp challenge

Ms Doherty says her guide would alternate between the group depending on the terrain they faced

A woman, who has been blind since birth, has said reaching Everest Base Camp is the "toughest thing physically and mentally" she has ever done.

Jennifer Doherty from Buncrana, County Donegal, completed the arduous 10-day trek with a group of fellow intrepid explorers.

Ms Doherty made the trip with assistance from the Donegal Centre for Independent Living's (DCIL) Opportunity Fund.

It gives people with disabilities the chance to fulfil life-long ambitions that they may not be able to afford.

The team followed the route to the south base camp in Nepal, which sits at an altitude of about 5,364m, that was navigated by Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary in 1953.

Ms Doherty, who returned to the Republic of Ireland earlier this week, described it as an experience of a lifetime.

'Didn't even think about it'

Ms Doherty, the self-confessed novice when it comes to traversing a mountain, said the opportunity to go on the expedition came as a complete surprise to her.

"I was approached by Letterkenny mountaineer Jason Black, who summited Everest back in 2013, completely out of the blue," she said.

Ms Doherty says the terrain was incredibly difficult in places

"He came to my house a week before Christmas. He contacted me out of nowhere and said would I be able to have a chat with him.

"He has summited Everest, done loads of things, so he came down and said he was taking a group to the base camp and asked if I would Iike to go.

The group pictured at the top of Everest Base Camp

"I never met him before, it was a complete shock, I didn't even think about it too long, I just said I'll go and I would just worry about all the logistics of it after."

Ms Doherty said after agreeing to go on the trip, the nerves did begin to kick in and she confessed she was apprehensive about many aspects of the trip.

"I was worried about whether I would be fit enough and about depending on other people for certain things because I couldn't see," she said.

"We were staying in different places every night and I wouldn't be able to find my way around for like the bathroom - which was just a hole in the ground sometimes.

"After meeting the group and going on a couple of practice hikes together, I kind of relaxed because everyone was just so lovely and friendly.

"I became less nervous then, and just couldn't wait to go."

• 'Climbing Everest became my reason to live'

• Man climbs to Everest base camp on crutches

'The terrain was so tough'

Ms Doherty said the uneven terrain they were encountering day-after-day made it incredibly tough to navigate both physically and mentally.

"The ground was so difficult because you're stepping on such uneven rocks," she explained.

"You had to completely trust the person you were walking with and if they were nervous I could feel it."

Ms Doherty says the whole trip was the experience of a lifetime

Ms Doherty said that her guide would alternate between the group depending on the terrain that they faced.

"The taller people would walk me on the more difficult parts and I would walk with some of the shorter people on some of the other parts."

A welcome home party was held for Ms Doherty at the Donegal Centre For Independent Living on Wednesday

Ms Doherty said she was "put completely out of her comfort zone" but said she was so glad that she went through with the trip.

"You can train and hike all you want, but you won't really know until you're there day-after-day how you're really going to feel.

"I am just so glad I did it. I think I was quite a strong person mentally before this, but even more so now.

"Your challenge doesn't have to be Everest, it could be anything, but whatever it is don't let anything stop you from going for it.

"You only have one life, you may as well make the most of it. Do whatever you can and have the most fun you can."