Legacy Series: The First American Ascent of Annapurna, Through the Eyes of Irene Beardsley

On a 1961 expedition to Makulu, Edmund Hillary forbade Irene Beardsley to step foot on the mountain, despite her impressive mountaineering resume, including ascents in the Tetons and Peru. But Irene was hungry for summits, regardless of being relegated to the “wives camp.” She knew a woman’s place was on top. This hunger would drive her to be part of the first American, and all-women’s, expedition to summit Annapurna I.