18-year-old Lucy Westlake reached the top of Mt. Everest this past week, May 12, 2022. The Illinois native is the youngest American to ever reach this impressive feat. Having grown up in the Chicago-area city of Naperville, Lucy has been climbing since she was 7 years old.
She climbed the 29,031.7 foot-tall mountain over a 26-day period and is now set to graduate from high school later this month. Her indescribable accomplishment makes her the youngest U.S woman to successfully summit Mount Everest. Lucy hopes to inspire other women to get outdoors and set forth to accomplish this incredible goal as a way to test her own limits.
Now, she has officially made history by summiting the tallest mountain. Lucy was accompanied by her father at the base camp but she climbed the mountain by herself. She chronicled her adventures on Instagram, keeping followers in the know as she moved throughout her journey. At one point, she had to sleep with an oxygen mask. This is a win for Lucy and Chicago, too. Congratulations, Lucy!
[Featured photo from Unsplash]