The ability to travel from place to place safely and efficiently is one of the most important skills a blind person can learn. This is true because if you can't go anywhere it is difficult to accomplish much.
Most blind people use a long white cane for independent travel.
A smaller percentage of people use guide dogs. The long white cane is a tool which is used by a blind person to clear a path in front of him or her. The hand should grasp the cane as if you were shaking hands with someone, and the index finger and thumb should extend along the handle. The hand holding the cane should be held about waist high and centered in front of your body fairly close to the stomach with the arm resting comfortably against your side. The cane should be moved in an arc back and forth tapping once on the left side and then moved to the right side.