Lynn Hill

A natural athlete, Lynn Hill competed as a gymnast and runner and immediately excelled at rock climbing after roping up at the age of fourteen. By the late 1970s, she was climbing near the top standards of the day. After pushing the limits of sport climbing and succeeding on the world competition climbing stage, Lynn returned to Yosemite to complete the climbs she is undoubtedly most famous for: the first free ascent and the first free one-day ascent of the Nose on El Capitan, feats that changed the definition of what’s possible in rock climbing. Lynn’s climbing spans all disciplines: she was the first woman to climb Midnight Lightning, a very difficult bouldering problem, as well as the first to succeed on difficult aid climbs on El Capitan. There are few Yosemite walls Lynn has not transformed. She lives in Boulder, Colorado, where she climbs, guides, coaches, skate skis, and is raising her son, Owen.