How Junko Tabei Became The First Woman To Make Mountain Climbing History

May 2024 · 2 minute read

Those four years were busy. As Women in History explains, Tabei had to organize a team of 15 expert climbers, all Japanese women, for this most perilous and prestigious of climbs. Curiously, she did not lead this group; that honor fell to Eiko Hisano. 

The biggest problem for the 15 explorers was money. The trip was enormously expensive, and although they managed to land a few corporate sponsors, like the newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun and Nippon Television, each climber had to contribute some $5,000 dollars on their own for gear, supplies, and transportation. Tabei's editorial job simply didn't pay enough to cover these costs. She took to giving piano lessons after work and economized around the house, sewing clothes from old tarpaulin and thrown-out curtains.

Finally, in May of 1975, the 15 climbers arrived at base camp of the world's biggest mountain. Accompanied by six Sherpa porters, they made good time for two days, but were struck by an avalanche, burying Tabei in snow. She lived, but it took another two days of rest for her to carry on. The team pressed on. As they approached the summit they faced another difficult decision. There was only enough supplemental oxygen for one climber to reach the peak. Who would it be? Hisano, the team leader, gave the tank to Tabei, who successfully planted the Japanese flag on the roof of the world — the first woman, and 36th person, to stand there.

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