Bio
I learned to climb with my older brother and my sister and her boyfriend in Southern California in 1975. I was 14 years old at the time and simply happy to tag along with them wherever they went climbing. Most weekends were spent in Joshua Tree or at Tahquitz and Suicide Rock, but occasionally we would go to a few local practice areas such as Big Rock at Stoney Point. My opportunities multiplied when I bought my first car and began traveling to new places on my own. I would sometimes venture out to more distant places like the Needles or Mount Woodson, and during my last years of high school, I spent my summers climbing in Yosemite for as long as my limited savings would allow.

In 1979, I teamed up with John Long and took off on an extended road trip to various destinations throughout the West. We loaded up my Volkswagen van and headed out. Starting in Yosemite, we then drove to Arizona, where we stopped to climb on the steep intimidating walls of Granite Mountain. From there, we went to several classic places in Colorado, including Eldorado Canyon, Independence Pass, and eventually ended up living in Telluride for several months, where we established a few significant first ascents of our own at the local area Ophir Wall.

After our journeys in Colorado, we spent another nine months or so living in Las Vegas, Nevada, until the crushing heat of the summer drove us back to Southern California. In 1980, when we started climbing at Red Rocks, there was such an abundance of new routes, free ascents, and boulder problems, we had the opportunity of bagging a few of the most classic routes in the area.

I was introduced to East Coast culture and a whole new type of climbing in 1983, when I moved to New Paltz, N.Y., the home of the Shawangunks. After getting sandbagged a few times by the locals, I quickly learned that the Gunks’ style of trad climbing requires a particular ability to place RP’s in horizontal crack systems, the clever use of double ropes, and the ability to climb straight out through multi-tiered overhangs.

My vision of what was possible dramatically changed in 1986, when I went on my first trip to France. I was in awe of the spectacular limestone walls of the Verdon Gorge, the pocketed overhanging cliffs of Buoux, and the wonderful bouldering paradise in Fontainebleau. From that point on, I joined the generation of climbers who participated in the first organized climbing competitions. I competed in international events for about six years until I decided it was time to move on to more interesting objectives that were more closely aligned with my values and desires as a climber.

One of those desires was to put all my skills and experience as a climber to the ultimate test – free climbing on a big wall. In 1993, I set out to try free climbing the Nose route on El Capitan, and this turned out to be perhaps my most significant achievement in climbing to date. I had first climbed the Nose in 1979, then again in 1992, with Hans Florine on a speed ascent taking just over eight hours. The following year, I returned to the Nose to make the first free ascent of the route on a four-day journey from bottom to top. A year later, I decided to go for an even greater objective – to free climb the route in a day! After one failed attempt, I finally pulled it off, leading every one of the Nose's 33 pitches in 23 hours. In 1995, I expanded my experiences on even bigger and more remote alpine big walls in Kyrgyzstan. I made the first free ascent of the 4,000-foot West Face of Peak 4810 (5.12b at 16,000 feet) with the late Alex Lowe. I also made the first free ascent of the area classic, called Perestroika Crack, on Peak 4240 with Greg Child.

In 1996, I had the pleasure of climbing on the limestone towers of Halong Bay, Vietnam, where I put up several new routes from the water up! The following year I continued my exotic travels to the Todra Gorge, Morocco, where I established a new route called Tête de Chou (5.13b) up a severely overhanging wall in the gorge. In 1999, I led my first “expedition” with a small team of women to the island of Madagascar (located off the east coast of Africa) to do a first ascent up a steep, 2,000-foot wall of granite. This route turned out to be perhaps the most difficult first ascent of a big wall ever done by a team of women (5.13d/A0).

Environmental Projects
In addition to the solar energy system I had installed on the roof of my house last year, I continued to help improve the efficiency and reduce the energy consumption of my household. My idea of creating a xeriscaped yard is to put moss-covered boulders in place of the steep slope of dirt and weeds in the front yard. This design not only saves water, but it saves time by not having to weed and water. The other functional aspect of these boulders is that they are not only aesthetically pleasing to look at, but they provide Owen and I a fun rock-hopping circuit in the front yard.

I also planted a vegetable garden in my backyard, complete with thyme, sage, different varieties of tomatoes, squash, basil, rosemary, and soon some zucchini, kale, and beets. There's nothing like eating home grown vegetables for superior taste, health, and minimizing the cost of transportation in getting food to my table.

The weather has been nice enough to do most of my commuting by bicycle. It not only feels good physically, but I take pride in minimizing my consumption of gasoline. I make sure to recycle everything I can, I bring my own bags to the grocery store, I pick up trash, consume/use as little as possible, ride a bicycle or walk when possible, and I give away useful items to others whenever possible. Every effort to conserve and/or minimize waste counts!

I support many different organizations and causes. Next week I will climb and coach for a session as a fundraiser for the Watershed School. A few months ago, I did a similar climbing session as a fundraiser for the Center for Resource Conservation. This weekend, I will attend the Climb4Life party here in Boulder, another organization dedicated to raising money for the Hera Foundation, whose primary goal is ovarian cancer research. At the end of last year, I had donated more than 1% of my earning to a variety of environmental and humanitarian organizations.

I've also helped both the Access Fund and the American Alpine Club, as well as a variety of other organizations to raise funds in order to help protect the environment and the privilege of climbing in these beautiful natural places.

Over the past few months I've done interviews with several magazines and on-line magazines. Here are a few: Forbes.com, National Geographic Adventure Magazine, Women's Adventure.com, Aura Magazine, National Parks and Recreation Association Magazine, a PBS show about "flow experience" and the meaning of happiness, Strong Woman Calendar, Common Wealth Magazine (Taiwan). I also field many other types of requests that come my way such as requests for information about climbing in Vietnam, Kyrgyzstan, how to approach climbing/training while pregnant, participation in several documentary film projects, donations for the Yosemite Exhibit (opening in mid June in the Valley), and requests for signed photos and memorabilia.

Favorite Web Sites
I try to spend as little time as possible sitting in front of this computer, so with the exception of browsing a few of my friend’s websites, I spend a bit of time looking at ones related to politics (where I sign various petitions), the environment, travel, film festivals, and several climbing-related topics. These include: nytimes, moveon.org, forest guardians, access fund, alpinist, supertopo, salon.com, mountainproject.com. planetmountain (Italian), escalade (French), rockclimbing, Patagonia, Petzl, and Planetbeal.

Education and Awards
- BS in biology from the University of New Paltz, New York, 1985
- World Cup Champion 1990
- Five-time winner of the prestigious, "Rock Master Invitational" in Arco, Italy, 1987-90 and 1992
- Three-time winner of the Bercy Masters in Paris, France, 1987-90
- Recipient of the Underhill Award presented by the American Alpine Club in 1984.
- Four-time winner of the "Survival of the Fittest" competition televised on NBC's "Sports World" 1980-83.
- Third place at the California State Championships in the 1500-meter track event and fourth place in the 3000-meter event, 1982.
- Winner of the 50-meter swim competition in the "Superstars" competition televised on ABC's "Wide World of Sports," 1981.
- League Champion (High School) in the All Around in gymnastics, 1978.

Climbing Achievements

(FFA = first free ascent)
(FA = first ascent)
(Team Free = leader free climbs and the second cleans the pitch)

FFA of Ophir Broke (5.12d) in Telluride, CO, ‘79
FFA of Pea Brain (5.12d) at Independence Pass, CO, 79'
FFA of Stairway to Heaven (5.12) at Tahquitz Rock, CA, 79'
FFA of Coatamundi White-Out (5.12) at Granite Mountain, AZ, 80'
FFA of Levitation 29 (5.11) at Red Rocks, NV, 81'
FFA of Hidden Arch (5.12a) in Joshua Tree, CA, 81'
FFA of Blue Nubian (5.11) in Joshua Tree, CA, 82'
FFA of Vandals (5.13a) in the Shawangunks, NY, 84'
FFA of Yellow Crack Direct (5.12c) in the Shawangunks, NY, 84'
FFA of Organic Iron (5.12c) in the Shawangunks, NY, 85'
FFA of Tourist Treat (5.12c) in New Hampshire, NY, 85'
FFA of Tweazle Roof (5.12d) in the Shawangunks, NY, 87'
FFA of Girls Just Want to Have Fun (5.12d), 87'
FFA of The Greatest Show on Earth (5.12d) in New River Gorge, WV. 88'
FFA of Running Man (5.13d) in the Shawangunks, NY, 89'
First Woman to climb 5.14a, Masse Critique in Cimai, France 90'
First Woman to on-sight a 5.13b, Simon Frankenjura, Germany 92'
FFA of the Nose route on El Capitan, Yosemite Valley, CA, 93'
First person to free climb the Nose on El Capitan in a day, 94'
FFA on-sight of Mingus (12 pitches 5.13a) in Verdon Gorge, France. 94'
FA of route on a 3550m wall in Kyrgyzstan, 95'
First "team free" ascent of a 4810m wall in Kyrgyzstan, 95'
FA of seven routes on limestone towers of Halong Bay, Vietnam, 96'
FA of Tête de Chou (5.13b) in the Todra Gorge, Morocco, 97'
First Woman to climb the Midnight Lightning in Yosemite, CA, 98'
First Woman to climb To Bolt or Not To Be (5.14a) Smith Rocks, 98'
First Woman to climb Scarface (5.14a) in Smith Rocks, OR, 99'
FA of Bravo Les Filles a 13-pitch route rated (5.13d/A0) on the Tsaranoro Massif in Madagascar, 1999
First Woman to climb Sprayathon (5.13c) in Rifle, CO, 2003
FA of Viva La Libertad (5.12b) in Viñales, Cuba, 2004

Current Projects
In addition to raising my five-year-old son, Owen, I’ve been working on a few interrelated projects that involve teaching and sharing my knowledge and experience in climbing with others. In 2005, I started a business offering climbing camps in several beautiful climbing areas across the U.S. and a few in Sardinia, Italy. I've also managed to squeeze in the time to take a ten-day Rock Instructor course offered by the American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA), as well as a couple of Wilderness First Responder courses (check out my web site: lynnhillclimbs.com or lynnhillblogs.com).

These climbing camps have been a real learning opportunity for me. Through the process of teaching, explaining, and demonstrating technique, I've learned a lot about how to explain and show the mechanics of movement. The video analysis portion of the camps has been an invaluable tool for showing people what they look like while climbing and how they could make more efficient choices to improve their technique. Video has been such a useful tool that I decided to produce a video illustrating the mechanics of climbing technique in a variety of different dimensions and on different types of rock. So far we have gotten some great footage of the Stem Gem in California, several locations in the Boulder area, including the Rainbow Wall in Eldorado Canyon, Easter Rock and Animal World in Boulder Canyon. Hollow's Way, and the Low Down Traverse on the Monkey Traverse Wall in Flagstaff, and one day at the Spot climbing gym.

Other locations for the video will include limestone cliffs in the Arco region of Italy, Little Cottonwood Canyon in Utah, the Gunks to shoot Foops, the Red River Gorge and a few other bouldering areas such as Joe's Valley.

Favorite Products
Without a doubt, the Women’s Down Sweater (Full-Zip) is my favorite product of the year! I wear it every day in a variety of weather conditions from slightly cold to very cold and this jacket seems to help me maintain a comfortable temperature, while allowing freedom of movement and no extra bulk.

The Women's Wilkins shoes look like an improved version of the hemp shoe that I have been wearing practically every day since I got them! I love the comfort and convenience of sliding my feet into the shoe without having to tie them, thanks to the leather heel that folds down onto the foot-bed in clog-style. I love the stylish new hemp fabric and toe design. (I just received the Wilkins shoes and I love the design and comfort but the heel doesn't fold down as nicely as the previous hemp shoe model).

The Simple Guide pant is the perfect pant for activities such as climbing, skate skiing, or any other outdoor activity in cold conditions. The stretch fabric and durability is a perfect combination for vigorous sports and for layering when the conditions change.

Women's Cordalette Shorts are very comfortable shorts for most activities but for climbing and aerobic activities, I prefer to wear the Women's Serenity Shorts since they are lighter and made with a stretch cotton/lycra fabric, which allows for maximum freedom of movement with minimal binding and bulk.

The Women's Hotline Top and the Active Classic Cami tops are my favorite tops for summer activities! The simple-yet-functional design works well for women with an athletic build.

The Capilene® 4 Zip-Neck: I need the extra warmth for proper functioning of my muscles when it's cold, so this has become my favorite layering piece for aerobic activities such as skiing and running, as well as for climbing.

The Vitaliti Tank is one of my most comfortable tank tops because of the relaxed fit and soft stretchy fabric. This top has no built-in bra, leaving the under-garment choice of having a built-in optional. However, it's nice to have the option to have a built in bra sometimes, so I also wear the Vitaliti Sole Tank.

I wear the Women's Active Briefs and the Ultra Lightweight Endurance Ankle Socks practically every day. Both garments are comfortable and fast drying, which is perfect for both sport and leisure.

The Boucau Swim-Suit is by far the best fit in the bathing suit category for my small body.