Lynn Hill Shoes

Object/Artifact

-

Yosemite Climbing Museum

Name/Title

Lynn Hill Shoes

Entry/Object ID

2026.1.142

Description

Boreal's "Bamba" shoes worn by Lynn Hill during the first free ascent of The Nose in 1993.

Use

Climbing Shoes

Context

These are the shoes that Lynn Hill wore during her ascent of The Nose in 1993. She free-climbed the route, eliminating the use of aid. Using only her hands and feet to ascend the rope, she only placed gear to protect herself from falls. She became the first person—male or female—to free climb the 2,900-foot, 5.14-rated route. Her accomplishment, summarized by the quote "It goes, boys!", shattered gender barriers, proving that technique and skill could overcome brute strength on one of the world's most daunting big walls.

Collection

Yosemite Climbing Museum Permanent Collection

Category

climbing shoes

Acquisition

Accession

2026.1

Notes

Donated by Lynn Hill in 1994 to Ken Yager while working on her 1994 Nose in a day ascent.

Made/Created

Manufacturer

Boreal

Dimensions

Width

3 in

Length

7-1/2 in

Location

Location

Display Case

Exhibit Case 12

Date

February 17, 2026

Provenance

Provenance Detail

Lynn Hill

Notes

Gifted to Ken Yager in 1994

General Notes

Note Type

Cataloging Note

Note

Caption in the museum is: "Climbing shoes that were used by Lynn Hill to free climb the Nose in 1993. Many of the world’s best climbers had tried to free the Nose. At only 5’1” Lynn became the first climber to do it. As if that wasn’t enough, she went back the following year and repeated it in a day. The news rocked the climbing world."

Create Date

February 17, 2026

Update Date

February 24, 2026