art-of-suffering:Women in HimalayasWanda Rutkiewicz (February 4, 1943 - May 12-13, 1992)On 16 Octobe
art-of-suffering:Women in HimalayasWanda Rutkiewicz (February 4, 1943 - May 12-13, 1992)On 16 October 1978, she became the third woman, the first Pole, and the first European woman to reach the summit of Mount Everest. In 1986 she became the first woman to successfully climb and descend K2, which she did without supplemental oxygen, as part of a small expedition led by Lilliane and Maurice Barrard. Her dream was to become the first woman to summit all fourteen of the eight-thousanders. During her climbing life she successfully summitted the following mountains:1978 - Mount Everest1985 - Nanga Parbat1986 - K21987 - Shisha Pangma1989 - Gasherbrum II1990 - Gasherbrum I1991 - Cho Oyu1991 - Annapurna I1992 - Kangchenjunga (uncertain)It was while climbing Kangchenjunga that 49 year-old Rutkiewicz was last seen alive by Mexican climber Carlos Carsolio. Her body was never found. Picture 2: Wanda Rutkiewicz walked in to K2 base using crutches. She obviously could not climb the mountain but she organized the expedition and walked the Baltoro and Godwin -Austen glaciers all the way sometimes crying in pain. She wore through several pairs of crutches. Her love of climbing was much stronger than the pain she was going through…..source:wikipedia -- source link
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