Famous female explorers facts for kids
This article is about incredible women who explored or traveled the world in new and exciting ways. These women were pioneers, meaning they were among the first to do something challenging or difficult. They include naturalists (people who study nature), sailors, mountain climbers, dog sledders, swimmers, and pilots. Astronauts are not on this list, but you can find them in the list of female astronauts.
Contents
Trailblazers of the Past
Many brave women set out on journeys long ago, even when it was very unusual for women to travel alone. They faced many challenges but still managed to explore new lands and make amazing discoveries.
First Around the World
One of the earliest women to travel around the world was Jeanne Baré from France. She did this way back in the 1700s! To join a French expedition, she had to dress up as a man. She sailed with the expedition from 1766 to 1769, becoming the first woman to circumnavigate the globe.
Later, in the 1800s, Ida Pfeiffer from Austria traveled alone around the world in 1847. She wrote popular books about her many adventures.
An American journalist named Nellie Bly made headlines in 1889. Inspired by the book Around the World in Eighty Days, she decided to try and beat that time. She traveled around the world in just 72 days, setting a new record!
Exploring Distant Lands
Isabella Bird was a British explorer and writer who traveled by herself through many countries in the late 1800s. She visited North America, Hawaii, Japan, China, India, and even Morocco. She wrote many books about her journeys.
Gertrude Bell was a British explorer and writer who mapped parts of the Middle East in the early 1900s. She explored places like Syria, Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq), and Arabia. Her knowledge was so important that she helped shape the future of these regions.
Mary Kingsley was a British ethnographer and explorer of West Africa in the late 1800s. She studied the cultures and nature of the region, often traveling alone in dangerous areas.
Béláné Mocsáry was a Hungarian geographer and writer who traveled solo to four continents in the early 1900s. Her journeys were quite remarkable for her time.
Modern Adventurers
As technology advanced, women began to explore the world in new ways, from flying planes to skiing across icy continents.
Conquering the Skies
Amelia Earhart was an American pilot who became famous for her flying records. In 1932, she was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. She disappeared during an attempt to fly around the world in 1937, but her legacy as a brave aviator lives on.
Amy Johnson from Britain was another pioneering aviator who set many long-distance flying records in the 1930s. She was the first woman to fly solo from England to Australia.
Lady Hay Drummond-Hay was a British journalist who made history in 1929. She was the first woman to travel around the world by air, doing so in a Zeppelin (a type of airship).
Aloha Wanderwell was an American explorer who became the first woman to drive around the world. She completed this incredible journey in the 1920s, driving a car across many continents.
Scaling Mountains and Icy Poles
Junko Tabei from Japan was an amazing mountain climber. In 1975, she became the first woman to reach the summit of Mount Everest, the world's highest mountain. She also climbed the highest peaks on all seven continents.
Wanda Rutkiewicz was a Polish mountain climber. In 1986, she became the first woman to successfully climb K2, which is known as one of the most difficult and dangerous mountains in the world.
Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner from Austria achieved an incredible feat. She was the first woman to climb all fourteen of the world's highest mountains (called "eight-thousanders") without using extra oxygen.
Ann Bancroft from America was the first woman to travel over the ice cap to both the North and South Poles. Her journeys involved extreme cold and difficult conditions.
Felicity Aston from Britain was the first person to ski alone across the entire Antarctic land-mass using only her own strength. She was also the first woman to cross Antarctica alone.
Barbara Hillary was the first African American woman to reach the North Pole in 2007. She later also reached the South Pole, making her the first African American woman to reach both poles.
Sailing the Seas and Trekking Lands
Berthe Cabra was a Belgian traveler who, in the early 1900s, became the first European woman to travel across central Africa from East to West. This was a very challenging journey through remote areas.
Krystyna Chojnowska-Liskiewicz from Poland was the first woman to sail solo around the world in the 1970s. This was a huge achievement, requiring great skill and endurance.
Kay Cottee from Australia was the first woman to sail solo and non-stop around the world in 1988. This meant she didn't stop at any ports during her entire journey.
Laura Dekker from the Netherlands became the youngest person to sail solo around the world in 2012, completing her journey at just 16 years old.
Rosie Swale-Pope is a Swiss, Irish, and British adventurer who has run, walked, and sailed around the world, showing incredible determination and physical strength.
Sarah Marquis from Switzerland is an adventurer who walked 10,000 miles across Asia, Siberia, and Australia. Her journey took her through deserts, mountains, and vast wildernesses.
Robyn Davidson from Australia is famous for her 1,700-mile camel trek from Alice Springs to the west coast of Australia in the late 1970s. She wrote a popular book about her experience.
Images for kids
-
English writer Gertrude Bell in Iraq, 1909.
-
Belgian Berthe Cabra.
-
Japanese climber Junko Tabei.
-
Hungarian geographer Béláné Mocsáry
-
Canadian-born Aloha Wanderwell
Related pages
