Why aren’t there more women climbing mountains?
As a Search and Rescue volunteer in Deschutes County, we have an oft-repeated statistic that we cite to incoming SAR academy members: groups who recreate in the outdoors that include a woman are significantly less likely to require a rescue. In addition to packing the 10 essentials, tagging along with a woman might be the safest thing you could do on a backcountry adventure. But in the 10 years I’ve been climbing I could count on one hand the number of other women that I’d climbed with. When you narrow that down to alpine climbing and mountaineering, the number goes down to one finger! Far from being a liability, we’re an asset in the outdoors. So why aren’t there more women climbing mountains?
part of the AWE x Peru team - Clara on the right
Fifty years after the passage of Title IX, we still see participation and funding for women in sports and outdoor recreation lagging. In fact, last week I was shopping for a new splitboard and I scrolled and scrolled and scrolled online looking for a women’s board, or even a men’s/unisex board that would fit my smaller size. For every 25 men’s boards I found, I saw one that would either fit me, or was designed for women. And at 5’4” I’m exactly average height for an American woman, which means if manufacturers aren’t marketing towards me, I don’t know who they are marketing to (Hint: men).
Don’t get me wrong: I’m beyond grateful for the many men who I’ve roped up with over the past decade. But as I was branching out in my mid 40s from technical rock to higher altitude mountaineering, I was lucky enough to join and all women’s team to Peru’s Cordillera Blanca with AWExpeditions and the support of Nite Ize and the Summit Scholarship Foundation.
What can I say about this experience?
Climbing with the team that Sunny put together was a revelation. Some women came with mountaineering experience, while others had completed arduous, high-altitude treks and hikes but were new to technical mountaineering. But what we all brought was more grit and determination to try new things than I have seen in a long time. They couldn’t have been more different than the many men I’ve climbed with, almost all of whom grew up in the mountains and have been climbing practically since they were in diapers. Each and every woman on our team has broken the mold for how her life was laid out for her, and this kind of magical thinking about what we can accomplish despite the guardrails that our families, circumstances, or society puts on us made for an inspiring team.
I think I was one of the more experienced climbers – I’m a backcountry splitboard patroller, SAR volunteer and have done solo ascents of mountains across the Pacific Northwest and the Rockies. But I think I learned more from the rest of my team than they ever learned from me. While technical proficiency with ropes, crampons, and ice axes can help make you a more efficient climber, courage, grit, and a belief in yourself that you belong can take you even further. I watched members of our team push through altitude sickness, pitch black alpine starts on 3 hours of sleep, and unfamiliar gear and surroundings.
For showing me your courage and determination, I will be forever grateful to the 6 other women I was able to share those days in the Cordillera Blanca with.
