Thirty Below

Thirty Below tells the harrowing and heroic story of the first all-women’s ascent of Denali. Drawing on extensive archival research and original interviews, Cassidy Randall builds an edge-of-the-seat account of the team who called themselves the “Denali Damsels,” and the brutal, high-consequence reality they faced on North America’s tallest peak.

At the center is Grace Hoeman—an Alaska doctor who had already been turned back by altitude sickness and a storm that killed seven climbers—and Arlene Blum, another climber shut out of expeditions unless she stayed in base camp and cooked. Randall puts you in the middle of their defiant plan to lead an all-female team, and the moment when disaster strikes and the margin for error disappears. It’s the kind of mountain story that sticks with you long after you close the cover.