| Lucy Westlake
Mountain Climber - Youngest female to climb the lower 48 state high points
Age 12
_______________________________________________________________________________
I began my high pointing quest at the age of seven when my family and I visited our home state’s high peak, Black Mountain of Kentucky. Standing at the top of Black Mountain, we began to wonder where other state high points were located. We spent the next four hours while driving home looking up and reading about state high points.
I have always loved to travel and explore new places. I lived in Queretaro, Mexico, for a year at the age of six. During that year, my mom, dad, and I climbed Mexico’s fourth highest peak, La Malinche, which instilled in me a love for mountain climbing. La Malinche was not my first big mountain climbing adventure. At the age of four, I summited Newfoundland’s second highest peak, Gros Morne.
Even though I lived in Louisville, Kentucky, from the age of 2-11 (5-6 in Mexico) and now live in Naperville, Illinois, I consider my true home to be Eagle Harbor, Michigan. I was born at home in a snowstorm on November 4, 2003, in Eagle Harbor, a rural community in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan on Lake Superior. I have spent every summer of my life in Eagle Harbor exploring the woods and climbing up Mt. Baldy, the local mountain of 1319 ft elevation.
My state high pointing quest began on the top of Black Mountain in April 2011. For the next five years, my family and I planned our trips around high points. It is an amazing way to travel and see our country. I hope I can inspire other girls my age and families to start high pointing. It is an awesome experience!
On July 22, 2016, my father and I summited Kings Peak (Utah), the last of our lower 48 high points. We are the youngest father-daughter team to accomplish this goal.
I plan to climb Denali next year at the age of 13 in hopes of becoming the youngest female to climb all 50 state high points (current record is age 18).
|
