Emily Harrington Sends Yosemite’s Golden Gate

American climber, Emily Harrington, has succeeded in sending her big wall project of 2015 with her send of Golden Gate 5.13.

It took Harrington six days to send the 41-pitch El Cap route, which she led every pitch on. The first ascent of Golden Gate was in 2000 by Alex and Thomas Huber.

There are a number of challenging crux pitches that range from thin crack to very wide offwidths.  In 2011, UK climber, Hazel Findlay, became the first woman to send Golden Gate.

Harrington wrote on her Facebook page after the ascent, “I started the process of learning how to trad climb three years ago. I struggled with all of it: the intimidating art of placing gear and having the confidence to climb above it, the painful practice of jamming hands and feet into negative space and moving upward, and the seemingly impossible game of trust that comes with standing on one’s toes on granite friction slabs and believing you will stick somehow.

“Two days ago I stood on top of El Capitan after free climbing Golden Gate. It was a bloody, tear-stained battle, done in the best style possible for me. I’m so proud of what I achieved, but I know that there’s much more to learn and take away from such journeys, and I hope this is only the beginning for me.”

A photo posted by Emily Harrington (@emilyaharrington) on Jun 2, 2015 at 2:44pm PDT

Harrington’s next project is Venturi Effect 5.12 on the Incredible Hulk in the Sierra’s, which was first climbed by Canadian Peter Croft and partners.

For more on Harrington, visit her website here.