10-Year-Old Becomes the Youngest to Climb ‘The Nose’ on Yosemite’s El Capitan

Selah Schneiter is no stranger to rock climbing. She first touched a boulder at 3-days-old, and has been climbing for years with her dad, who runs a climbing guide company in Colorado. Now, she’s added climbing the 3,000-face of El Capitan’s “The Nose” to her resume, and she’s only 10-years-old.

The young Schneiter’s ascent of the famous granite face makes her the youngest person to topple the peak and a strong reminder of the power of hard work and dedication. She climbed the massive peak with the supervision of her father, Mike Schneiter, and family friend Mark Regier.

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After five days on El Cap our ten year old daughter topped out, fulfilling a longtime goal that she had worked hard towards. More to come about an amazing experience. #elcap #goals #defygravity #yosemitenationalpark #thenose

A post shared by Glenwood Climbing Guides (@glenwoodclimbingguides) on Jun 13, 2019 at 6:32am PDT

“It was all hard.” Selah told The Fresno Bee. “There were a few times where I would be sore and tired and sunburned, and that would kind of get me going a little bonkers. But overall, it was just great to be up there away from the world.”

The entire journey took five days to complete, stopping frequently to gaze upon the amazing Yosemite views and fueling up on pizza. In the face of a massive rock wall and thousands of feet between her and the ground, Selah used her experience on El Capitan to stay calm and push through.

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Hope you’re having a great time hanging out, one way or another, on this fine Saturday. Here, hanging 2,000 feet up The Nose route on El Capitan in Yosemite National Park. #hangingout #thenose #elcap #yosemite #rockclimbing #notsport #bigwall #defygravity

A post shared by Glenwood Climbing Guides (@glenwoodclimbingguides) on Jun 15, 2019 at 8:30am PDT

“I was scared just sometimes,” Selah told Outside magazine’s Chris Van Leuven at the top. â€œI thought it was really fun.” 

The family has a history of of hanging out on El Capitan. In fact, Selah’s parents, Mike and Joy Schneiter, met on the famous peak in 2001. Today, the rock wall remains a monument to a family of adventurers.

The former record holder for youngest climber on El Capitan was 11-year-old Scott Cory, who summited the peak in 2001.