"The job is complete," Daniel Wolfson said on Sunday morning shortly after she successfully reached the summit of Mount Kosciuszko (2,228 meters), the highest mountain on the continent of Australia. Wolfson, the first Israeli woman to reach the summit of Everest, on Sunday also became the first Israeli woman to conquer the seven highest mountain peaks in each of the seven continents of the world.
Climbers chant "Bring them home now!" on the summit of Mount Kosciuszko in Australia
(Video: Courtesy of Daniel Wolfson)
Wolfson climbed the mountain with 20 other Israeli and Australian Jews. "The hostages were with us on our shirts and in our hearts," said the climber, who waved the Israeli flag and unfurled a banner calling for the release of the hostages in Gaza, exactly half a year after the terrorist attack by Hamas on October 7.
Although it is the lowest peak on the list of the seven peaks, the road was not easy, and the weather was not kind to the expedition that encountered rain and strong winds. "The mountain is always there, and it has its own plan," said Wolfson, who noted that it took her seven years to climb the seven peaks.
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Israeli climber Daniel Wolfson at the summit of Mount Kosciuszko
(Photo: Courtesy of Daniel Wolfson)
Last month, Wolfson was a guest at the Ynet studio ahead of the trip to Australia, and noted that so far about 500 people around the world have completed the 7 Summits Challenge, of which only about 70 are women. Doron Erel, the first Israeli to reach the summit of Everest, was also the first Israeli to complete the Seven Summits journey in 2000.
Wolfson climbed a cumulative height of 40,599 meters in 147 climbing days in these mountains:
Everest (Asia) – 8,848 meters.
Elbrus (Europe) – 5,642 meters.
Denali (North America) – 6,194 meters.
Aconcagua (South America) – 6,959 meters.
Vinson Massif (Antarctica) – 4,892 meters.
Kosciuszko (Australia) – 2,228 meters.
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Daniel Wolfson and her friends unfurl a banner calling for the release of the hostages in Gaza at the summit of Mount Kosciuszko
(Photo: Courtesy of Daniel Wolfson)
The 14 peaks challenge is not yet complete
"I was supposed to go to the last mountain on October 7, but of course everything was postponed," said Wolfson, who added that she is always asked if she enjoys climbing high mountains.
"I don't enjoy it," was her unexpected reply. "The journey is certainly not pleasurable - sleeping on ice, consuming food that I can't stomach, battling malnourishment and cold. However, reaching the summit and standing there, raising the Israeli flag, and doing it as a woman, it's a feeling that simply surpasses all the hardships. It fuels my motivation and strength. When I'm on the mountain, I function like a robot, focused entirely on the mission that I need to accomplish."
Wolfson is trying to be the first Israeli woman to conquer the 14 highest peaks in the world. In May, she was almost killed during the attempt to complete the mission when she ran into stormy weather about 120 meters from the summit of Mount Makalu (8,462 meters above sea level), the fifth highest mountain in the world.
"This year I will return to this mountain to complete the task," promised Wolfson who spoke about the change she has experienced in recent months in how others relate to her as an Israeli.
"In the first week after October 7, many people from around the world wrote to me and were interested, but little by little I see the distance, the disengagement, some even stop talking to me. This actually encourages me even more to put the Israeli flag in every camp, everywhere, even if there are people there that don't like us; that's fine, we're here, we have our own country and the country's flag will stand on every summit."