She was the first woman to climb to the roof of the world...but three months later the mountains claimed her life

As the lone fig approached the acme of Mount Everest buffeted by winds zipping astir its dizzyingly steep and treacherous slopes, the consciousness of accomplishment was palpable.

Here she was, the archetypal pistillate to basal connected apical of the satellite aft scaling Earth’s highest upland unaided and without oxygen. 

It was a remarkable, record-breaking effort and Alison Hargreaves could nary longer incorporate her emotions. ‘This is the astir fantastic time of my life,’ she declared breathlessly, arsenic she radioed down to basecamp that outpouring time successful May 1995.

Wheezing from the bladed aerial astatine the 29,031ft peak, Hargreaves asked that an important connection beryllium faxed to her household successful Scotland: ‘To Tom and Kate, my beloved children,’ she gasped, ‘I americium connected the highest constituent of the world, and I emotion you dearly.’

At the time, the feat received astir cosmopolitan acclaim with paper beforehand pages declaring it ‘One of the top climbs successful history’ and a media frenzy greeted the mother-of-two’s instrumentality to the UK.

Yet, it would beryllium the precocious constituent of a stellar vocation as, conscionable 3 months later, her ambitious quest to go the archetypal pistillate to ascent the world’s 3 tallest mountains without oxygen would beryllium brought to an abrupt and tragic halt.

On August 13, 1995, Hargreaves had already reached the apical of K2, the world’s 2nd highest highest – known arsenic the ‘Savage Mountain’. 

But arsenic she and the 5 climbers she was with circumvented the vertiginous acme ridge, they were caught up successful the 260mph winds of a sudden, unexpected tempest and blown to oblivion. A bloodstained jacket, harness and her climbing footwear were found, though her assemblage was ne'er recovered. She was conscionable 33.

Hailed a leader aft Everest, Hargreaves suffered a posthumous backlash for supposedly putting her emotion for the mountains earlier her responsibilities arsenic a mother. 

Those fathers who died connected the upland alongside her escaped akin censure.

Back location successful Fort William, successful the shadiness of Ben Nevis and successful the oculus of a increasing media storm, it was near to her husband, Jim Ballard, to fend disconnected the property and explicate to their children, Tom, past six, and four-year-old Kate, that Mummy was ne'er coming back.

It was, Ballard aboriginal recalled, ‘the hardest happening that immoderate genitor volition person to do’. There tin beryllium fewer things much upsetting and confusing for a six-year-old kid to grasp than their mother’s untimely death. 

Kate ‘cried and shouted’ but having digested the news, Tom is said to person looked up astatine his begetter and announced: ‘I privation to spot Mum’s past mountain.’

His words mightiness easy beryllium dismissed arsenic a heartbroken lad struggling to explicit the grief of losing a parent. 

He could not person known the difficulties progressive successful trekking to Pakistan’s distant Karakoram scope to glimpse a highest truthful distant that erstwhile it was archetypal measured successful the 19th period nary section sanction for it could beryllium recovered and it has kept its bureaucratic Survey of India tag.

Nevertheless, young Tom did question with his begetter and sister to basal campy successful Pakistan with a BBC documentary squad to wage their past respects, though the travel was dismissed arsenic a stunt successful immoderate quarters and Jim Ballard faced accusations helium was trading connected his wife’s decease for fiscal gain.

Given each of that and each the grief visited upon him arsenic a youngster by mountaineering, 1 mightiness person expected Tom to steer good wide of a vocation successful climbing. 

But the Ballards, it would seem, are wired otherwise to the remainder of us.

His mother’s burning tendency to propulsion the boundaries appeared to airy a occurrence successful her son, drafting him inexorably towards the aforesaid information for which he, too, would wage the eventual price. 

Tom Ballard, became a climber arsenic talented and committed arsenic his parent and died astatine astir the aforesaid property arsenic she did connected a mountain, Nanga Parbat, 100 miles from wherever her assemblage lies everlastingly encased successful ice. His assemblage was ne'er recovered either.

The unspoken question connected truthful galore lips indispensable beryllium - was it ever destined to extremity similar that? That the destiny of the lad rested connected that of his mother? 

It would person travel arsenic nary astonishment to Alison Hargreaves had her critics tried to laic the blasted for her son’s decease astatine her doorway – a mislaid kid everlastingly trying to reconnect with his parent successful the mountains which claimed her.

Certainly, Hargreaves felt herself unfastened to a scrutiny not applied to her antheral colleagues. 

In her past interview, with chap climber Matt Comeskey astatine K2’s basal campy conscionable a fortnight earlier her final, fatal climb, she addressed the challenges and inequalities faced by pistillate mountaineers.

‘I deliberation women ascent earlier they get married, earlier they person boyfriends and babies, past they suffer interest,’ Hargreaves told Comeskey, who would past the tempest aft turning backmost early. ‘Having children is precise fulfilling, and a batch of radical don’t consciousness the request for thing else. For me, that was a conscious decision. I really wanted children, and I besides wanted to transportation connected with the climbing.’

Asked if a pistillate climber needed to beryllium tougher than a man, she said: ‘I deliberation that women successful wide person to enactment harder successful a man’s satellite to execute recognition.’ Recalling an speech with a well-known climber astatine a dinner, she was shocked erstwhile helium asked, “Are you a roadie?”. ‘For me, that was the worst happening helium could person said,’ she added. ‘I’ve ever had a spot connected my shoulder, I’m sure.’

Perhaps it was that spot which prompted her to dedicate her beingness to the macho satellite of mountaineering. 

f so, it began aboriginal successful her life. Born connected a stormy February time successful 1962 into a comfortably middle-class household successful Derbyshire, her begetter John, a elder technological serviceman astatine British Rail Derby, took her scrambling, hillwalking and climbing and she was rapidly hooked by the lure of outdoor adventure. 

The walls of her teenage chamber were covered successful images of mountains and climbers and schoolhouse expeditions and a household vacation to the Austrian Alps lone boosted her enthusiasm for the hills.

She was lone 18, and inactive a schoolgirl, erstwhile she shocked her parents by moving successful with Ballard, who was 16 years her senior. 

The mates met astatine his outdoor instrumentality store successful the Peak District wherever she had a Saturday job, and their narration was ever founded on, and analyzable by, climbing. He offered her a mode into this male-dominated country successful which they some believed she could excel.

They would aboriginal determination to Fort William and the matrimony produced 2 children connected whom they doted but the narration proved stormy. 

Hargreaves’ letters and diaries revealed posthumously successful a arguable 2010 biography amusement that, earlier her past travel to K2, she had considered leaving her hubby amid acheronian claims of Ballard’s controlling behaviour.

Partly, it is said, she climbed to supply for her household arsenic her husband’s mountaineering store fell unfortunate to recession successful the Nineties, but besides to question refuge successful the mountains from an unhappy location life. 

Her biographers claimed she had stayed with Jim Ballard due to the fact that she needed security, but the fame and respect which would travel her exploits connected Everest and K2 could present supply that. 

She would travel down from the acme a changed pistillate and statesman a caller beingness without her husband.

Ballard has antecedently acknowledged that the matrimony was successful occupation astatine the clip of the effort connected K2 but has ever refused to entertain the much superior allegations astir what went connected down closed doors, saying: ‘They were her idiosyncratic diaries, and they were not to beryllium work by outsiders.’

However estranged they were by the clip of her death, her hubby expressed disappointment successful however women and mothers are judged for succeeding successful their careers, peculiarly unsafe ones. 

‘How could I person stopped her?’ helium said of his woman successful a 2002 interview. ‘I loved Alison due to the fact that she wanted to ascent the highest highest her skills would let her to. 

That’s who she was.’ He added: ‘I conscionable anticipation that determination was a constituent to Alison’s decease and that, successful the agelong term, what she achieved volition assistance displacement attitudes.’

Many present spot Hargreaves arsenic a trailblazer – a pistillate who pushed astatine the limits, climbing fearlessly due to the fact that she loved it, and due to the fact that she was bully astatine it. 

She made respective large climbs successful the Alps, but ever felt she had to resistance the baggage of motherhood up down her. 

In 1988, she climbed the North Face of the Eiger portion six months large with Tom. After the climb, she received criticism. ‘I was pregnant, not sick,’ Hargreaves responded.

In a way, Tom’s archetypal Alpine ascent was with his mother, roped unneurotic umbilically. 

Perhaps it was inevitable Tom would travel his parent into the mountains. 

Despite their disintegrating relationship, some parents were agreed that Tom and Kate should beryllium raised successful an ‘adventurous way’. 

When his woman died, Ballard kept that committedness and took the children canoeing, upland biking and walking successful the hills. 

He baulked astatine climbing until a caller climbing partition successful Fort William became a favourite for children’s day parties and Tom asked his begetter wherefore they ne'er went climbing. ‘I couldn’t deliberation of a bully capable reason,’ said Ballard. ‘So I took them retired 1 day. And that was it for Tom.’ 

His lad was a earthy and soon began to standard hard routes with evident ease. 

Aged astir 11, waiting to spell into school, Tom abruptly realised helium had recovered his calling. ‘That was it. I was sorted,’ helium said. ‘I’ve wavered a fewer times since then, but it’s each I’ve ever wanted to do.’ 

His sister, present 34, an occasional climber, would instrumentality to the comparatively harmless vocation of a nonrecreational skis teacher and utmost snowboarder, but Tom was melded to the rock. ‘It’s similar a drug,’ helium erstwhile said. ‘The much we do, the much we want.’ 

He dedicated himself to the climber’s nomadic life, touring Europe successful a campervan successful hunt of the adjacent situation with his retired begetter successful tow arsenic cook, usher and mentor. 

In 2015, Ballard was crowned the ‘King of the Alps’ aft helium became the archetypal idiosyncratic to solo-climb the six large northbound faces successful 1 winter. 

Describing however it felt to beryllium among mountains, helium reflected: ‘I conscionable consciousness that she’s determination somewhere, not needfully present, but conscionable ever there.’

Tellingly, helium entrusted his beingness to his mother’s aged crystal axes and stowed his cogwheel successful the aforesaid barrels she utilized connected her ill-fated K2 expedition. 

Moreover, helium ne'er blamed Hargreaves for leaving him motherless. On the contrary, helium said: ‘I would person been disappointed with her if she hadn’t gone retired to unrecorded her dreams.’ 

Climbing was ‘always pushing yourself to a constituent of nary return, to spot however acold to the borderline you tin get without falling off’. 

Tragically, for each his prodigious talent, Tom Ballard – similar his parent earlier him – yet got excessively close.

He had plans for his ain expedition to K2 but efforts to rise the indispensable £150,000 warfare thorax had stalled – contempt the household connection, no-one was biting.

Instead, successful 2019, Tom acceptable retired to conquer a antecedently unclimbed way to the acme of the world’s ninth highest mountain, Nanga Parbat, connected the occidental fringe of the Himalayas, conscionable implicit 100 miles distant from his mother’s last resting spot connected K2.

Along with an Italian climber, Daniele Nardi, helium attempted a steep ridge called the Mummery Spur towards the 26,600ft summit, described by immoderate experts arsenic ‘suicidal’ owed the risks of avalanche.

As they pushed for the summit, vigor interaction was lost. An ominous soundlessness stretched into weeks and, aft an exhaustive search, their bodies were spotted successful an country truthful distant they could not beryllium recovered.

The unhappy symmetry was implicit – a parent and lad lying successful their icy tombs connected abstracted mountains, mislaid portion reaching for their dreams.

And conscionable arsenic before, erstwhile his parent perished, a BBC documentary squad followed a pilgrimage, this clip by an big Kate to the spot wherever her member had fallen. 

Their father, present aged 79 and surviving successful France, decided it was a travel excessively acold and declined to go. The resulting film, ‘The Last Mountain’, remains a hard watch, haunted by ghosts.

Her parent would person been 63 present and her member 36 and though the mountains robbed Kate of both, successful decease their bequest arsenic large climbers remains steadfast.

‘I’m blessed Tom and my mum are here,’ she tells the filmmakers. ‘It’s the astir beauteous spot successful the satellite and it’s wherever they wanted to be.’

She adds: ‘It’s astir similar mum is cradling him and they volition beryllium unneurotic everlastingly now.’

A parent and lad - trailblazers. Immortals.