Super Short Summary

In her memoir, Breaking Trail (2005), American mountaineer and environmental scientist Arlene Blum narrates how she overcame the low expectations of her family and institutional sexism to become a pioneering female mountaineer, best known for leading the all-women team which achieved the first American ascent of Annapurna (I). Blum also discusses her career as a scientist, her experience of motherhood, and her trekking expeditions through the Himalayas and the Alps. When she becomes a mother in 1990, Blum quits high-altitude climbing for good.Triggering topics include mentions of death and sexist discrimination.