The Old Man of Hoy. Photo: Grinner CC-BY-SA-3.0

A blind climber plans to summit a Scottish sea stack to raise cash for research into the condition that robbed him of his sight.

Red Széll aims to be the first blind man to climb the Old Man of Hoy, first climbed by Chris Bonington, Rusty Baillie and Tom Patey in a live television broadcast watched by 15 million viewers.

The 41-year-old London househusband has retinitis pigmentosa, and has lost 90 per cent of his sight.

He will attempt the 137m (449ft) ascent of the Orcadian red sandstone column next month with climbers Martin Moran and Nick Carter.

The common route up the Old Man is rated E1, though there is a super-hard E10 on the stack.

Money raised from Mr Széll’s challenge will go to gene-therapy research at Moorfields Hospital.

He learned to climb in the 1980s while at school, tackling routes at Swanage and in the Brecon Beacons. After moving to London he said he got out of the climbing habit until he rediscovered his passion for the sport at climbing walls.

Mr Széll said: “But to be honest because my sight was degenerating steadily and I’d begun to use a white stick to get around on the ground, I felt self-conscious about climbing with a partner again and instead paid for instructed lessons.

“However so encouraging and open-minded are the other members at the various walls, especially my climbing partner Matthew Wootliff, that they soon put me right and – though I wouldn’t dream of leading a climb.

“I now have a circle of climbing friends all of whom are always happy to belay or be belayed by me, and shout instructions as to where the next hold is, and have been encouraging me to get out and climb some proper rock.”

Red Széll climbing in Scotland in April this year. Photo: Nick Carter

His thoughts then turned to the possibility of getting to the top of the exposed stack he had seen climbed on television.

“Ever since I first saw the Old Man on a BBC documentary in the late 80s I’ve wanted to climb it,” he said. “When I started being able to tackle 5Cs and 6As on the walls the other guys told me I should give it a shot.

“We searched around and found that Martin Moran runs regular climbs on the Scottish sea stacks and was, by general consensus, the man to go to.

“He wanted to check out my abilities so I arranged to go and climb with him and Nick Carter just after Easter.

“Going up to Scotland was a revelation. I had forgotten there is no right or wrong way to climb the route, no being told that the hold you’ve just grasped is the wrong colour.

“I climbed Cioch Nose completing the circuit in a creditable nine hours.

“The scramble down and the walk off were my biggest problem, taking a good hour-and-a-half more than a sighted person would have taken, but the climb itself was a workout but great fun.

“And afterwards Martin told me that he thought that the Old Man was within my capabilities.”

His blindness gives him one advantage over some climbers, he believes.

“Fortunately having only very limited sight means that I don’t really suffer from worry about exposure which, according to those who’ve climbed the Old Man who I’ve spoken to, is a positive bonus as far as the traverse is concerned,” he said.

“But I must say I am a bit worried about the approach, and the overhang looks none too pretty.”

His preparation for the climb, planned for 19, 20 or 21 June, depending on the weather, includes some climbing on the Roaches in the Peak District.

When he’s not climbing Mr Széll also enjoys swimming, tandem-bike riding and hiking – usually between pubs, he added.

He is also an author. His book, Blind Trust, tells the tale of a man with retinitis pigmentosa caught up in a conspiracy among London’s banking elite.

His justgiving page has already raised more than £4,000 for the Moorfields project.