Katie Lamb has once again made history, becoming the first woman to climb a confirmed V16 boulder problem—for the second time. Her latest accomplishment came with her ascent of The Dark Side in Yosemite National Park, a 17-move challenge that has only been conquered by a select few elite climbers. In doing so, she set an undeniable milestone in women’s climbing and reaffirmed her place at the forefront of the sport. But for Lamb, the journey was about much more than the title.
In an Instagram post following her achievement, Lamb reflected on the mental and physical demands of the climb, as well as the perseverance it required. “There are moments of stickiness for a scaler,” she shared, describing the balance between preparation, persistence, and showing up to try, even when the odds seem daunting. That mindset carried her through the many months it took to tackle The Dark Side—a boulder problem established by Carlo Traversi in December 2023 and widely considered one of the toughest in the United States.
This isn’t Lamb’s first brush with the V16 grade. In July 2023, she climbed Box Therapy in Colorado, initially celebrated as the first woman to ascend a V16 boulder. That achievement, however, became mired in controversy after top climbers later reevaluated the climb, downgrading it to V15. For Lamb, the public discourse surrounding Box Therapy was an eye-opening experience. “[The] drama generated by others [felt] imposing,” she explained, reflecting on the external pressure to conform to narratives she didn’t create. Afterward, she found herself questioning the value she personally placed on public opinion about her climbing.
This time, however, there’s no debate. The Dark Side has been repeatedly confirmed by other climbers, including Aidan Roberts and Keenan Takahashi, as V16. For Lamb, it’s not just the difficulty of the problem but the process that makes the accomplishment personally meaningful. “It felt like there was so much to learn and discover,” she said of the climb, which she first tried in early 2024. Lamb had to combat various challenges over the months she dedicated to the project, including Yosemite’s notoriously tricky weather conditions, physical setbacks, and moments of doubt. At times, she thought she might not complete the climb this season. But by refocusing her mindset—shifting from an outcome-driven goal to one grounded in curiosity and progress—she unlocked her potential and stuck the send.
While climbing at this level is hardly straightforward, Lamb said that she savored the process of working on The Dark Side—even in the face of setbacks. With its friction-reliant holds and precise movements, the problem demands a delicate balance between power and finesse. Lamb explained the unique conditions required to make progress: finding the ideal mix of skin moisture and rock friction, trying on cooler days, and even relying on post-rainstorm humidity to aid her efforts on the sloper-dominated problem.
Ultimately, her persistence was rewarded in March, on what she described as a surprisingly warm day. Believing it might be her last chance of the season, Lamb went in with no expectations—and climbed the hardest route of her career. For her, the experience supersedes any external accolades: “It was almost cliché,” she admitted, “but I went through this arc of trying something at my limit, not being sure if I could do it… then detaching a little bit from what the climb would represent in a larger sense.”
Despite the achievement’s significance for women’s climbing, Lamb has consistently emphasized the importance of separating external validation from personal experience. She’s proud, of course, to inspire others and to contribute to raising the bar for female athletes, but her motivations remain deeply personal. “I feel proud that women might find this inspiring or that this is a new level for women’s climbing,” she said. “But that can exist without me personally feeling like I embody that.”
Katie Lamb’s ascent of The Dark Side cements her position as one of the leading figures not just in women’s bouldering, but in climbing as a whole. Yet her story is a reminder that even at the highest levels of the sport, the journey remains as important as the destination. With this historic climb behind her, Lamb not only proves her physical prowess but also demonstrates the value of persistence, self-reflection, and, above all, finding meaning beyond the spotlight.
