Today in history: May 16, 1975 - first woman climbs Mt. Everest

Photo: Creative Commons

On May 16, 1975, Junko Tabei, a Japanese mountain climber   reached the summit  becoming the first woman to climb the world's highest peak

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According to The Coshocton Tribune on May 18, 1975,

"Mrs. Junko Tabei, packing a limited stock of gear, braved bad weather to reach the top of 29,028-foot Mt. Everest at noon Friday to end a 22-year male domain, 

"The achievement was made more remarkable by the fact that she and her party was hit by an avalanche May 4 at their second high altitude camp pitched at 21,000 feet." 

According to Wikipedia Tabei was born May 23, 1939, and is known as one of the best mountain climbers in Japan. The Yomiuri newspaper and Nihon Television decided to send an all-woman team to Nepal in order to challenge the unforgiving Mt. Everest. Fifteen women including Junko out of hundreds were selected for the expedition.

"After a long hard training, early in 1975, they traveled to Katmandu, where they found nine local Sherpa people to guide them. They used the same route Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay took in 1953. By early May, the women camped at a height of 6,300 meters, and there they were resting when an avalanche struck their camp.

The women, including Junko and the guides, were buried under the snow. Tabei lost consciousness for about six minutes until her Sherpa guide dug her out. Twelve days after the avalanche, Tabei became the first female to reach the summit of Mount Everest.

"In 1992, Tabei was the first woman to complete the Seven Summits."

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