Woman climbing a small crack above her belay partner and a river in Yosemite National Park, California (high angle view).
Beth Rodden completing the first ascent of Meltdown () in Yosemite, CA on February 14, 2008. She worked on the route for 4 months through the stormy Sierra winter contending with feet of snow. The route protects completely natural and she placed all of the gear on lead. "I worked harder on this route than any other single pitch climb I have done," Rodden said. She is hesitant to give the route a letter grade but considering she has redpointed several 's and did the first ascent of the Optimist () in roughly half the time, Meltdown is most likely the hardest climb redpointed by an American woman and the hardest traditional climb completed in the world by a woman. It also puts her in an elite category of two or three women ever to have climbed
Size: 3467px × 5200px
Location: Yosemite National Park, California, USA
Photo credit: © Corey Rich / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: Yes
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