Pioneering Women of Aoraki Mount Cook with Hazel Phillips

Hazel Phillips is an author and journalist who grew up scared of the outdoors, until a friend carrying all her own gear on the Milford Track made her think she could do it too. She shares about her new book Great Hearts, the stories of 30 women climbing around Aoraki Mount Cook from 1873 to the first all-women unguided ascent in 1953. Hazel talks about climbing in long skirts and motoring veils, a woman who bluffed her way into a guiding job at the Hermitage, and the small erasures that wrote women out of mountaineering history. She reflects on how many of these women were never going to take no for an answer. Hazel shares advice for women that want to progress past basic snowcraft, and why Ruapehu is the ideal place to start mountaineering.

Thank you so much for tuning in and coming along for the ride. If you love the show and enjoyed listening, please take the time to leave a review on Apple or Spotify. I would also love to connect with you, so send me a DM on Instagram, leave me a voice message and I can't wait to see you next time. Until then, keep adventuring :)

Follow Hazel on Instagram: https://instagram.com/hazelvonwonderpants/

Buy Great Hearts: https://masseypress.ac.nz/products/great-hearts

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