Women and World Exploration:
Journeys from a female narrative
(Image: Robyn Davidson, National Geographic, 1977)
Embedded Files
Celebrating the expeditions and extreme journeys undertaken by women, this information is work in progress...
Timeline of female explorers
Gudrid Thorbjarnardóttir (Icelandic) 980-1019With her husband, led an expedition to North America
Jeanne Baret (French) 1740-1807circumnavigated the world disguised as a (male) sailor
Hester Stanhope (British) 1776-1839Conducted archaeology in Holy Land and travelled dressed as a man
Henrietta d’Angeville (French) 1784 - 1871Mountaineer
Ida Pfeiffer (Austrian) 1797-1858Travelled alone around the world in 1847, published books of her travels
Marianne North (British) 1830-1890Victorian biologist and botanical artist
Isabella Bird (British) 1831 - 1904 Explorer, travelled solo in 1854, the first woman inducted into the Royal Geographical Society in 1892.
Alexine Tinne (Dutch) 1835-1869Dutch explorer in Africa, the first European woman to attempt Sahara crossing
Alessandra Boarelli (Italian) 1838-1908Italian mountaineer, the first woman to summit Monviso in the Alps in 1864
Béláné Mocsáry (Hungarian) 1845-1917Hungarian geographer and travel writer travelled solo to four continents
Louise Bourbonnaud (French) 1847-1915French philanthropist, explorer and writer who traveled alone through North and South America and the Far East
Mabel Bent (Anglo-Irish) 1847-1929Explored and excavated with her husband James Bent in the Eastern Mediterranean, South Africa and Southern Arabia
Matilda Coxe Stevenson (American) 1849-1915Ethnologist and geologist who explored the Rocky Mountain region and the Southwest U.S.
Annie Smith Peck (American) 1850-1935First person to climb Mount Nevado Huascarán (Andes)
Eliza Scidmore (American) 1856-1928Journalist and travel writer on Alaska and Far East
Fanny Bullock Workman (American) 1859-1925American cartographer, explored glaciers in Himalayas
Mary Kingsley British 1862-1900Ethnographer and explorer of West Africa
Edith Durham (British) 1863-1944Explored Albania and the Balkans
Aimée Crocker (American) 1864-1941Heiress, writer spent a decade exploring the Far East in the 1890s (Java and Borneo)
Berthe Cabra (Belgian) 1864-1947Belgian traveller, first European woman to travel across central Africa from East to West
Nellie Bly (American) 1864-1922journalist who travelled around the world in 72 days, the first to emulate Jules Verne
Annette Meakin (British) 1867-1959travelled Trans-Siberian Railway; (The Ribbon of Iron;) and other parts of Russia
Gertrude Benham (British) 1867-1938Explorer, hiker and mountaineer
Alexandra David-Néel (French) 1868-1969Travelled to Tibet while closed to foreigners (for religious research)
Gertrude Bell British 1868-1926Explored and mapped the region of Syria, Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, Arabia
Beatrix Bulstrode (British) 1869-1951Journalist and writer who traveled through China and Mongolia in 1911–1913
Ynes Mexia (Mexican-American) 1870-1938Mexican botanist and explorer (started her career at age 55) discovered (Mexianthus) and many new species of plants
Annie Londonderry (Latvian American) 1870-1947First woman cycle around the world (by boat)
Octavie Coudreau (French) c. 1870 - c. 1910Early explorer and geographer of the Amazon region in Brazil and French Guiana
Vefa de Saint-Pierre (French) 1872-1967hunting expeditions traveling across North and South America and Australia,
Charlotte Cameron (American) 1872/3-1946American traveller and author
Harriet Chalmers Adams 1st president Society of Woman Geographers (founded in 1925) follow the trails of Columbus,
Isabelle Eberhardt (Swiss) 1877-1904Swiss explorer and writer in Algeria, who converted to Islam and traveled freely dressed as a man
Gabrielle Maud Vassal (British) 1880-1959Naturalist in Vietnam, Congo, Gabon
Charlotte Mansfield (British) 1881-1936Wrote 'Via Rhodesia' (1911) about her travels in Southern Africa
Enid Gordon-Gallien (British) c. 1887-1931Explored and mapped Kalambo Falls
Louise Arner Boyd (American) 1887-1972Explored Greenland and the Arctic
Adeline and Augusta Van Buren (American) 1889-1949the first women to ride motorcycles across the continental US
Alma Maximiliana Karlin (Slovene) 1889-1950World traveler, writer, poet, polyglot and theosophist; second European woman to circle the world solo; in an eight-year travel, she explored North and South America, Oceania, Australia, East Asia, and India
Freya Stark (British / Italian) 1893-1993Travelled within and wrote about the Middle East, including the Arabian deserts, Afghanistan
Odette du Puigaudeau (French) 1894-1991conducted field research among the nomads of the western Sahara region with her partner artist Marion Sénones (1886–1977)
Osa Johnson (American) 1894-1953documented travels in Africa, South Pacific, Borneo with husband Martin
Lady Hay Drummond-Hay (British) 1895-1946First woman to circumnavigate the world, travelling as air-passenger
Amelia Earhart (American) 1897-1937First woman to fly solo across Atlantic
Clärenore Stinnes (German) 1901-1990First woman to circumnavigate the world by vehicle (TBC)
Beryl Markham (British) 1902-1986Kenyan aviator (one of the first bush pilots), first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic from east to west
Ella Maillart (Swiss) 1903-1997Explorer and travel writer in Asia from the late 1920s through to World War II; wrote Forbidden Journey – From Peking to Kashmir
Amy Johnson (British) 1903 - 1941first woman to fly solo from Britain to Australia
Beryl Smeeton (British) 1905-1979Mountaineer, cruising sailor, overland traveller
Eva Dickson (Swedish) 1905-1938Swedish explorer, aviator, travel writer, first woman to cross the Sahara by car
Aloha Wanderwell (American) 1906-1996drove solo around the world
Nicole Maxwell (American) 1906-1998Traveled the Amazon jungle gathering plants for natural remedies and medicine
Annemarie Schwarzenbach (Swiss) 1908-1942Journalist and photographer, travelled to Iran, Afghanistan, Africa
Jean Batten (New Zealander) 1909-1982First woman to fly between England and New Zealand solo
Lyuba Kutincheva (Bulgarian) 1910-1998Bulgarian traveler and polyglot who traveled for almost a decade (1929–1938) through the Middle East, Far East, northern Africa and Europe
Dorothy Pine (American) 1920-2011Possibly first woman to visit all 193 UN-recognised countries
Delia Akeley (American) 1869-1970traveled led her own expeditions and on the ethnography of the Forest People pygmies
Dervla Murphy (Irish) 1931-2022Irish travel writer known for cycling alone through Europe, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan to India
Barbara Hillary (American) 1931-2019First woman of colour to reach North Pole
Krystyna Chojnowska-Liskiewicz (Polish) 1936 - 2021First woman to sail solo around the world
Helen Thayer 1937 Named one of the most important explorers of the 20th century by the National Geographic Society (2009).
Junko Tabei (Japanese) 1939-2016First woman to reach summit of Mount Everest
Wanda Rutkiewicz (Polish) 1943-1992Mountain climber, first woman to successfully summit K2
Anne-France Dautheville (French) 1944-Motorcycled solo around the world
Carol Beckwith (American) 1945-Photographer, author, and filmmaker documenting the tribal cultures of Africa, in partnership with Australian photographer Angela Fisher
Rosie Swale-Pope (Swiss / Irish / British) 1946-Has run, walked and sailed around the world
Ginny Fiennes (British) 1947 - 2004First woman to be awarded the Polar Medal, orchestrated the Transglobe Expedition
Robyn Davidson (Australian) 1950-Walked from Alice Springs to the west coast of Australia by camel
Kay Cottee (Australian) 1954First woman to sail solo, non-stop around the world
Ann Bancroft (American) 1955First woman to travel over the ice cap to the North and South Poles
Dominick Arduin (French) 1960 - 2004Disappeared on her attempt to become the first woman to ski alone to the North Pole
Alison Hargreaves 1962-1995 Climbed Mount Everest without the help of oxygen or a Sherpa
Vanessa O'Brien (American / British) 1964 -First woman to reach Earth's highest (Mt. Everest 8,848m) and lowest points (Challenger Deep 10,925m)
Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner (Austrian) 1970 -First woman to climb all fourteen eight-thousander mountains without supplementary oxygen
Laurence Bougault (French) 1970 - 2018long-distance horseback adventurer in Africa, Middle East and Europe
Kira Salak (American) 1971 -Travelled in Mali and Papua New Guinea
Sophia Danenberg (American) 1972 -First woman of colour to reach summit of Mount Everest
Sarah Marquis (Swiss) 1972 -Swiss adventurer and explorer who walked 10,000 miles across Asia, Siberia and Australia
Renata Chlumska (Czech / Swedish) 1973-Climbed Mount Everest, kayaked and bicycled around lower 48 states of USA
Belinda Kirk 1974 - (British explorers connect) world travel, captained the first all-female rowing team to circumnavigate Britain non-stop
Ellen MacArthur 1976-Fastest solo circumnavigation of the globe
Felicity Aston 1977 -First person to ski alone across the Antarctic land-mass using only personal muscle power, as well as the first woman to cross the Antarctic land-mass alone
Stephanie Solomonides1982 -First Cypriot person to reach North and South Poles
Cassandra de Pecol 1989Fastest Person (Female) to Travel to All Sovereign Nations"
Jessica Watson (Australian / New Zealand) 1993 - Youngest person to sail non-stop and unassisted around the world
Laura Bingham 1992 - South America
Laura Dekker 1995 -Youngest person to sail around world solo
Alexis Alford 1998 -Youngest American to travel to every country in the world
Gudrid Thorbjarnardóttir (Icelandic) 980-1019With her husband, led an expedition to North America
Jeanne Baret (French) 1740-1807circumnavigated the world disguised as a (male) sailor
Hester Stanhope (British) 1776-1839Conducted archaeology in Holy Land and travelled dressed as a man
Henrietta d’Angeville (French) 1784 - 1871Mountaineer
Ida Pfeiffer (Austrian) 1797-1858Travelled alone around the world in 1847, published books of her travels
Marianne North (British) 1830-1890Victorian biologist and botanical artist
Isabella Bird (British) 1831 - 1904 Explorer, travelled solo in 1854, the first woman inducted into the Royal Geographical Society in 1892.
Alexine Tinne (Dutch) 1835-1869Dutch explorer in Africa, the first European woman to attempt Sahara crossing
Alessandra Boarelli (Italian) 1838-1908Italian mountaineer, the first woman to summit Monviso in the Alps in 1864
Béláné Mocsáry (Hungarian) 1845-1917Hungarian geographer and travel writer travelled solo to four continents
Louise Bourbonnaud (French) 1847-1915French philanthropist, explorer and writer who traveled alone through North and South America and the Far East
Mabel Bent (Anglo-Irish) 1847-1929Explored and excavated with her husband James Bent in the Eastern Mediterranean, South Africa and Southern Arabia
Matilda Coxe Stevenson (American) 1849-1915Ethnologist and geologist who explored the Rocky Mountain region and the Southwest U.S.
Annie Smith Peck (American) 1850-1935First person to climb Mount Nevado Huascarán (Andes)
Eliza Scidmore (American) 1856-1928Journalist and travel writer on Alaska and Far East
Fanny Bullock Workman (American) 1859-1925American cartographer, explored glaciers in Himalayas
Mary Kingsley British 1862-1900Ethnographer and explorer of West Africa
Edith Durham (British) 1863-1944Explored Albania and the Balkans
Aimée Crocker (American) 1864-1941Heiress, writer spent a decade exploring the Far East in the 1890s (Java and Borneo)
Berthe Cabra (Belgian) 1864-1947Belgian traveller, first European woman to travel across central Africa from East to West
Nellie Bly (American) 1864-1922journalist who travelled around the world in 72 days, the first to emulate Jules Verne
Annette Meakin (British) 1867-1959travelled Trans-Siberian Railway; (The Ribbon of Iron;) and other parts of Russia
Gertrude Benham (British) 1867-1938Explorer, hiker and mountaineer
Alexandra David-Néel (French) 1868-1969Travelled to Tibet while closed to foreigners (for religious research)
Gertrude Bell British 1868-1926Explored and mapped the region of Syria, Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, Arabia
Beatrix Bulstrode (British) 1869-1951Journalist and writer who traveled through China and Mongolia in 1911–1913
Ynes Mexia (Mexican-American) 1870-1938Mexican botanist and explorer (started her career at age 55) discovered (Mexianthus) and many new species of plants
Annie Londonderry (Latvian American) 1870-1947First woman cycle around the world (by boat)
Octavie Coudreau (French) c. 1870 - c. 1910Early explorer and geographer of the Amazon region in Brazil and French Guiana
Vefa de Saint-Pierre (French) 1872-1967hunting expeditions traveling across North and South America and Australia,
Charlotte Cameron (American) 1872/3-1946American traveller and author
Harriet Chalmers Adams 1st president Society of Woman Geographers (founded in 1925) follow the trails of Columbus,
Isabelle Eberhardt (Swiss) 1877-1904Swiss explorer and writer in Algeria, who converted to Islam and traveled freely dressed as a man
Gabrielle Maud Vassal (British) 1880-1959Naturalist in Vietnam, Congo, Gabon
Charlotte Mansfield (British) 1881-1936Wrote 'Via Rhodesia' (1911) about her travels in Southern Africa
Enid Gordon-Gallien (British) c. 1887-1931Explored and mapped Kalambo Falls
Louise Arner Boyd (American) 1887-1972Explored Greenland and the Arctic
Adeline and Augusta Van Buren (American) 1889-1949the first women to ride motorcycles across the continental US
Alma Maximiliana Karlin (Slovene) 1889-1950World traveler, writer, poet, polyglot and theosophist; second European woman to circle the world solo; in an eight-year travel, she explored North and South America, Oceania, Australia, East Asia, and India
Freya Stark (British / Italian) 1893-1993Travelled within and wrote about the Middle East, including the Arabian deserts, Afghanistan
Odette du Puigaudeau (French) 1894-1991conducted field research among the nomads of the western Sahara region with her partner artist Marion Sénones (1886–1977)
Osa Johnson (American) 1894-1953documented travels in Africa, South Pacific, Borneo with husband Martin
Lady Hay Drummond-Hay (British) 1895-1946First woman to circumnavigate the world, travelling as air-passenger
Amelia Earhart (American) 1897-1937First woman to fly solo across Atlantic
Clärenore Stinnes (German) 1901-1990First woman to circumnavigate the world by vehicle (TBC)
Beryl Markham (British) 1902-1986Kenyan aviator (one of the first bush pilots), first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic from east to west
Ella Maillart (Swiss) 1903-1997Explorer and travel writer in Asia from the late 1920s through to World War II; wrote Forbidden Journey – From Peking to Kashmir
Amy Johnson (British) 1903 - 1941first woman to fly solo from Britain to Australia
Beryl Smeeton (British) 1905-1979Mountaineer, cruising sailor, overland traveller
Eva Dickson (Swedish) 1905-1938Swedish explorer, aviator, travel writer, first woman to cross the Sahara by car
Aloha Wanderwell (American) 1906-1996drove solo around the world
Nicole Maxwell (American) 1906-1998Traveled the Amazon jungle gathering plants for natural remedies and medicine
Annemarie Schwarzenbach (Swiss) 1908-1942Journalist and photographer, travelled to Iran, Afghanistan, Africa
Jean Batten (New Zealander) 1909-1982First woman to fly between England and New Zealand solo
Lyuba Kutincheva (Bulgarian) 1910-1998Bulgarian traveler and polyglot who traveled for almost a decade (1929–1938) through the Middle East, Far East, northern Africa and Europe
Dorothy Pine (American) 1920-2011Possibly first woman to visit all 193 UN-recognised countries
Delia Akeley (American) 1869-1970traveled led her own expeditions and on the ethnography of the Forest People pygmies
Dervla Murphy (Irish) 1931-2022Irish travel writer known for cycling alone through Europe, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan to India
Barbara Hillary (American) 1931-2019First woman of colour to reach North Pole
Krystyna Chojnowska-Liskiewicz (Polish) 1936 - 2021First woman to sail solo around the world
Helen Thayer 1937 Named one of the most important explorers of the 20th century by the National Geographic Society (2009).
Junko Tabei (Japanese) 1939-2016First woman to reach summit of Mount Everest
Wanda Rutkiewicz (Polish) 1943-1992Mountain climber, first woman to successfully summit K2
Anne-France Dautheville (French) 1944-Motorcycled solo around the world
Carol Beckwith (American) 1945-Photographer, author, and filmmaker documenting the tribal cultures of Africa, in partnership with Australian photographer Angela Fisher
Rosie Swale-Pope (Swiss / Irish / British) 1946-Has run, walked and sailed around the world
Ginny Fiennes (British) 1947 - 2004First woman to be awarded the Polar Medal, orchestrated the Transglobe Expedition
Robyn Davidson (Australian) 1950-Walked from Alice Springs to the west coast of Australia by camel
Kay Cottee (Australian) 1954First woman to sail solo, non-stop around the world
Ann Bancroft (American) 1955First woman to travel over the ice cap to the North and South Poles
Dominick Arduin (French) 1960 - 2004Disappeared on her attempt to become the first woman to ski alone to the North Pole
Alison Hargreaves 1962-1995 Climbed Mount Everest without the help of oxygen or a Sherpa
Vanessa O'Brien (American / British) 1964 -First woman to reach Earth's highest (Mt. Everest 8,848m) and lowest points (Challenger Deep 10,925m)
Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner (Austrian) 1970 -First woman to climb all fourteen eight-thousander mountains without supplementary oxygen
Laurence Bougault (French) 1970 - 2018long-distance horseback adventurer in Africa, Middle East and Europe
Kira Salak (American) 1971 -Travelled in Mali and Papua New Guinea
Sophia Danenberg (American) 1972 -First woman of colour to reach summit of Mount Everest
Sarah Marquis (Swiss) 1972 -Swiss adventurer and explorer who walked 10,000 miles across Asia, Siberia and Australia
Renata Chlumska (Czech / Swedish) 1973-Climbed Mount Everest, kayaked and bicycled around lower 48 states of USA
Belinda Kirk 1974 - (British explorers connect) world travel, captained the first all-female rowing team to circumnavigate Britain non-stop
Ellen MacArthur 1976-Fastest solo circumnavigation of the globe
Felicity Aston 1977 -First person to ski alone across the Antarctic land-mass using only personal muscle power, as well as the first woman to cross the Antarctic land-mass alone
Stephanie Solomonides1982 -First Cypriot person to reach North and South Poles
Cassandra de Pecol 1989Fastest Person (Female) to Travel to All Sovereign Nations"
Jessica Watson (Australian / New Zealand) 1993 - Youngest person to sail non-stop and unassisted around the world
Laura Bingham 1992 - South America
Laura Dekker 1995 -Youngest person to sail around world solo
Alexis Alford 1998 -Youngest American to travel to every country in the world
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