A Japanese nurse who holds the distinction of being the only woman to successfully climb the world’s second-tallest mountain, K2, on three separate occasions has accomplished something even more remarkable: reaching the top of all 14 of Earth’s highest peaks.
However, for 44-year-old Naoko Watanabe, mountaineering represents much more than accumulating achievements. She views it as pursuing adventure, finding happiness, and discovering new cultures, people, and cuisines. This June, she plans to guide a team of amateur climbers back to Pakistan’s Nanga Parbat, dubbed the “killer mountain,” which remains her preferred destination.
“I’m just an ordinary person who has happened to achieve records while climbing the Himalayas during my vacations,” Watanabe explained during a recent Associated Press interview conducted in Tokyo. “I don’t consider myself a mountaineer.”
Watanabe’s high-altitude journey began in 2006 during her nursing school years when she successfully ascended Cho Oyu, standing at 8,201 meters (26,906 feet) as the world’s sixth-tallest mountain along the Nepal-China border.
This marked her inaugural climb of one of the globe’s 14 mountains that rise above 8,000 meters (26,246 feet).
Following her transition to full-time nursing at a university hospital in 2009, she found it challenging to juggle her career with her climbing passion, ultimately choosing temporary nursing positions to allow more frequent expeditions.
She now regularly ventures into the Himalayas as an escape from Japan’s demanding, conformity-focused society, using these climbs to restore her mental equilibrium. Her current mission involves introducing others who need respite to the happiness that mountain climbing can provide.
Watanabe is currently organizing a June expedition to Pakistan’s Nanga Parbat, the world’s ninth-tallest peak, which she successfully summited on her second try in 2022. For this upcoming journey, she intends to accompany amateur climbers, with most participants remaining at base camp.
“The Nanga Parbat base camp is extremely scenic and it’s my favorite among the 14 peaks,” Watanabe explained. “I want everyone to see that.” She encourages participants to move at their preferred speed, take breaks freely, capture photographs, and engage with Sherpa guides.
“They are not supposed to be working hard,” Watanabe emphasizes. “I want (the climbers) to be free from the stereotypes and realize that the Himalayas can be fun … and to know there are more important things than reaching the summit.”
Born in Onojo City in southern Japan in 1981, Watanabe began her adventure journey at age 3 when her mother enrolled her in a children’s adventure program. Her early experiences included island camping in China, expeditions across Mongolian grasslands with other youngsters, and climbing a snow-covered Pakistani mountain at age 12.
Throughout her youth, she credits her love for adventure and climbing with helping her navigate challenging periods as she wrestled with Japan’s cultural expectations to participate in group activities while avoiding individual distinction.
Her healthcare background has proven invaluable during her 31 expeditions spanning the last two decades.
“The experience (as a nurse) has become useful in the mountains when I face emergencies and need to make a quick decision on the spot about the weather or my own health conditions.”
During her initial Everest attempt in 2011, with only 150 meters (160 yards) remaining to the summit, she chose to retreat when weather conditions rapidly declined. Her emotional Sherpa objected, insisting they were merely one hour from the peak. However, Watanabe foresaw potential oxygen supply issues if deteriorating weather caused delays. During their descent, she temporarily lost her vision. They returned safely, though she developed pneumonia.
Returning to Everest in 2013 on an exceptionally windy day, conditions appeared more favorable. While other climbers withdrew, she proceeded cautiously and successfully reached the summit.
Watanabe achieved the milestone of becoming the first Japanese woman to conquer all 14 of the world’s tallest mountains in October 2024, when she summited the 8,027-meter (26,335-foot) Mount Shishapangma in China.
In July 2024, she also earned recognition from Guinness World Records as the first woman to reach the summit of the 8,611-meter (28,251-foot) K2, the world’s second-tallest mountain, on three occasions.
Watanabe intends to continue climbing for the pure enjoyment it provides.
“I will probably end up climbing (mountains in the Himalayas) about 100 times,” she projects. “It would be fun if that eventually becomes a record that I set in my own unique way.”
