Climbing History
A selected history of climbing and mountaineering through the climbers, climbs and media.
4034 Climbers
7841 Climbs
20688 Ascents
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Lynn Hill
Lynn Hill is one of the most accomplished rock climbers of all time. Her pioneering ascents in the 1980s and '90s culminated in the first free ascent of The Nose on El Capitan – one of the most coveted challenges in climbing – in 1993. The infamous Changing Corners pitch is a masterclass of technical climbing which continues to challenge the very best today. Hill returned the following year to complete the whole climb in under 24 hours.
Hill was the first woman to climb 7c, 7c+ and 8b+, and was at top of the comp game throughout the 1980s and early '90s.
I have been all over the world and have had the fortune of doing things with many special people, some famous, some anonymous. But the biggest little hero I’ve ever known is Lynn Hill. The rest of us are just holding her rope. [2]
Hill has experienced only one major accident in her climbing career. On May 9, 1989, she fell during a climb in Buoux, after forgetting to tie in, she fell 85 ft (25 m) into a tree, and was knocked unconscious, dislocated her left elbow and broke a bone in her foot. She had been training hard for the World Cup and had to stop competing for a few months to recover; she was devastated to miss the first World Cup in the sport. However, only six weeks after her fall, she was back climbing.
References
[1] Half Dome, 1977
[2] https://www.climbandmore.com/climbers/lynn-hill/
[3] Portrait by Dean Fidelman, 1997 https://www.instagram.com/p/Cr3uphIJ2Gy/
[4] Interview with Natalie Berry for UKClimbing.com March 2017 https://www.ukclimbing.com/articles/features/lynn_hill_-_climbing_free-9151
[5] Interview with Hannah Morris, 2024 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IE9_oAPRTsE
[6] https://open.spotify.com/episode/3pPhmAHHd46EAjdQkfb09Z?
[7] https://open.spotify.com/episode/2xtdsDPQpUgz0nVde4a7Fs?
Lynn Hill is one of the most accomplished rock climbers of all time. Her pioneering ascents in the 1980s and '90s culminated in the first free ascent of The Nose on El Capitan – one of the most coveted challenges in climbing – in 1993. The infamous Changing Corners pitch is a masterclass of technical climbing which continues to challenge the very best today. Hill returned the following year to complete the whole climb in under 24 hours.
Hill was the first woman to climb 7c, 7c+ and 8b+, and was at top of the comp game throughout the 1980s and early '90s.
I have been all over the world and have had the fortune of doing things with many special people, some famous, some anonymous. But the biggest little hero I’ve ever known is Lynn Hill. The rest of us are just holding her rope. [2]
Hill has experienced only one major accident in her climbing career. On May 9, 1989, she fell during a climb in Buoux, after forgetting to tie in, she fell 85 ft (25 m) into a tree, and was knocked unconscious, dislocated her left elbow and broke a bone in her foot. She had been training hard for the World Cup and had to stop competing for a few months to recover; she was devastated to miss the first World Cup in the sport. However, only six weeks after her fall, she was back climbing.
References
[1] Half Dome, 1977
[2] https://www.climbandmore.com/climbers/lynn-hill/
[3] Portrait by Dean Fidelman, 1997 https://www.instagram.com/p/Cr3uphIJ2Gy/
[4] Interview with Natalie Berry for UKClimbing.com March 2017 https://www.ukclimbing.com/articles/features/lynn_hill_-_climbing_free-9151
[5] Interview with Hannah Morris, 2024 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IE9_oAPRTsE
[6] https://open.spotify.com/episode/3pPhmAHHd46EAjdQkfb09Z?
[7] https://open.spotify.com/episode/2xtdsDPQpUgz0nVde4a7Fs?
Pics + Vids
Featuring 10023 pictures and videos. Try searching for a climber, climb or summit to see pics and videos.
Gaetan Simian on Bain de Sang 9a
Taylor McNeill on Levity 8B
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You may also be interested in the Mountain Heritage Trust, a charity dedicated to preserving the rich history of climbing and mountaineering. Their collection includes many unique and valuable items, from rare guidebooks through to the boots worn by Doug Scott on the 1977 Ogre expedition.
Explore
Fancy a look around? You can browse by climber or by climbs, or you can check out some lists. For example
- All sport ascents of 9b or above
- British women who have climbed 7C or above
- British men who have climbed 8c or above
Podcasts
Featuring 3914 podcasts. Try searching for a climber to see podcasts with them, or check out some of these podcasts:
- Allison Vest on The Nugget (2021)
- Dylan Chuat on Allez Podcast (2023)
- Chris Schulte on The Nugget (2026)
- Nasim Eshqi on Climbing Gold (2026)
Library
Featuring 14948 items in the library. Try a search to see what you can find, or check out these library items:
- Better than Chocolate - Additional Climbing Film
- Alpine Journal 1909 Vol 24 407-413 Carfrae Mont Blanc (1909) Journal
- Southern Sandstone (1995) Guidebook
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References
References
A longstanding enigma, climbed in 1987 the route has proved impervious to repeats.