This week on Monstrous, we step away from the usual darkness and into the thin air of the Himalayas for a story about quiet courage, not chaos.

We’re telling the life story of Junko Tabei—a Japanese schoolteacher and mother who became the first woman to climb Mount Everest and one of the first women to complete the Seven Summits. Her journey wasn’t just about breaking records; it was about quietly redefining what women were “allowed” to attempt in one of the most male‑dominated, physically extreme sports in the world.

This episode covers her childhood in post‑war Japan, her early love of the mountains, the formation of the all‑women Everest expedition, the avalanche that nearly ended it all, and the summit day that changed her life and the history of women in mountaineering. You’ll hear about her later climbs, her environmental advoca ...