Nine-Year-Old Becomes Youngest Climber to Reach Mountain Summit
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September 29, 2011 TheFreshOutlook  |
Stella Noble, who loves “to climb”, becomes the world’s youngest climber to conquer the sheer drop of Longs Peak, Colorado.
At the age of nine, Stella Noble has become the world’s youngest person to conquer the dangerous peaks of the Rocky Mountains. The schoolgirl describes her success as “cool”, whilst family and friends look on in pride.
Climbing for 12 hours, Stella faced a 2,000ft (609.6m) drop as she conquered the east face of Longs Peak, also known as The Diamond. Longs Peak is one of the most prominent mountains in Colorado, with the east face usually attempted by experienced climbers.
Stella, who is now aged 10, said: “I love to climb so I thought it would be cool.” She reached the 14,259ft (4,346m) summit with her father, Forrest Nobel.
“Stella thought it was cool. You can see everything including Denver, which is a long, long was away,” said 43-year-old Mr Nobel.
“I was scared but she wasn’t. As an adult you think more about fear. That’s the danger of bringing her up there.
“But I’ve done it over 20 times and I had the experience to know I could take her up there safely.”
Stella, from Boulder, Colorado, has proven to be an excellent climber in the past year. In July, she won the Sport Climbing Nationals in Atlanta, where she competed against under 11 climbers throughout the country.
By Catherine Rees
[Image courtesy of EYBusman]
