Emily Harrington climbs El Capitan’s Golden Gate in a day


Emily Harrington has completed a single day free ascent of Golden Gate on El Capitan in Yosemite, a year after surviving a harrowing fall on precisely the same big wall climb.

Last November the 34-year professional climber had set out to make a free ascent of the 41-pitch outing in less than 24 hours but her attempt was cut short when she slipped and fell low down on the route while climbing with Alex Honnold. Harrington miraculously escaped pretty much unharmed and returned earlier this autumn to become reacquainted with the route she had already climbed free over a six-day period in 2015.

Climbing with Alex Honnold once again, Harrington set off at 1:34am and after cruising up the early pitches - including where she had fallen a year earlier - required just 21 hours, 13 minutes and 51 seconds for her inspirational all-free ascent. Golden Gate was first climbed free by German brothers Alexander and Thomas Huber in September 2000