Lost Legends: Sue Fear

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Each year, the team at World Expeditions Travel Group commemorate the life of Sue Fear, a beloved colleague and Australia’s first lady of mountaineering. Sue’s life was cut short on May 28, 2006, when she fell in a hidden crevasse, as she descended from the summit of Nepal’s Manaslu (8,163m), the world’s eighth highest mountain.

Aged just 43 years at the time of her death, Sue was Australia’s leading female high-altitude climber. She was one of only ten women globally who had successfully climbed four 8,000+ metre mountains and was the first Australian-born woman to climb the technically difficult north face of Mount Everest.

Sue’s summit achievements:

Mt Kilimanjaro (5,895m) Tanzania
Mt Everest (8,850m) Nepal
Cho Oyu (8,201m) Nepal
Makalu II (7,678m) Nepal
Shishapangma (8,013m) Tibet
Gasherbrum II (8,035m) Pakistan

In 2005, Sue was awarded the Order of Australia for her achievements in mountaineering and charity work and, in 2003, she was named Australian Geographic’s Adventure of the Year.

Sue grew up on Sydney’s north shore and developed a passion in outdoor activities through the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, receiving the gold level. Combining work with her passion, Sue began guiding for World Expeditions in 1993, earning a reputation as a wonderful guide and companion.

As well as guiding internationally, Sue relished taking trekkers on the Northern Territory’s Larapinta Trail, through the West MacDonnell Ranges near Alice Springs, when World Expeditions first pioneered commercial walking on the trail.

Although she was widely regarded as cautious, Sue was nicknamed ‘Fearless’, in recognition of the courage and determination she demonstrated in her mountaineering career.

In a tribute to Sue, Australian Walking Holidays named one of its exclusive eco-campsites on the Larapinta Trail in her honour. Camp Fearless is one of four award-winning and environmentally sustainable campsites on the Larapinta Trail, offering an unmatched level of comfort on the trail. Read more about the Larapinta campsites and the trail.

Approaching Fearless Campsite on the Larapinta Trail | <i>Shaana McNaught</i>

There are very few books written by women climbers and Sue’s Fear No Boundary: the road to Everest and beyond is an intriguing read about Sue’s journey to become Australia’s most successful female mountaineer.

Co-authored with her friend Lincoln Hall, another accomplished Australian mountaineer and World Expeditions guide, the book recounts Sue’s path to summiting Everest.

'Climbing is a bit like rolling a dice - sometimes things fall into place and you achieve your aim. Sometimes your number comes up.' - Sue Fear