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Reaching New Heights With Brette Harrington ’10
Meghan McCarthy McPhaul

[Editor's Note: World-renowned rock climber and alpinist Brette Harrington ’10 was the featured speaker at this year's Commencement ceremony, where she received the school's 2024 Distinguished Alumni Award. The following story appears in the Summer 2024 edition of Holderness School Today.

Brette Harrington ’10 came to Holderness School for the skiing, but it was the climbing she found during her time here that inspired a lifelong passion, valuable lessons, and a career. Now, Harrington is renowned in the climbing world for her first ascents (45 and counting), versatility, and free solo climbs. Before she ascended onto the world stage in Patagonia and British Columbia, Harrington tackled Rumney Rocks and Cathedral Ledge. And the lessons she learned during her time in New Hampshire have continued to resonate as she travels the world.
 
“There are so many things I learned during my time at Holderness that have been important to me,” Harrington said. “The biggest one is finding people who believe in you.”
 
Other lessons important in climbing – and in life – are to put in the work, understand the risk, get proper rest, and be willing to pivot.
 
Originally from the Lake Tahoe area, Harrington grew up ski racing out west and made the switch from racing to freestyle in high school. After a series of injuries, she abandoned competitive skiing and joined the climbing program at Holderness, where found a new passion – and learned to overcome fear, to be a good partner, and to embrace exploration.
 
“We would go out every afternoon to climb in Rumney. On Wednesdays and Saturdays, we went to Cathedral Ledge in North Conway and climbed multi-pitches,” Harrington said. “I remember my very first multi-pitch climb. I was with my coach, Mr. Piper, and a friend of mine. That was my first time being super high off the valley floor. I was scared being so high. But my friend was way more fearful than I was, so I had to remain really calm. Of course, we were totally safe with our coach there, but it was still a pretty scary experience – in a good way. I loved it, and it was exciting.”
 
Learning to distinguish between rational and irrational fear – and how to deal with those in real time – is all a part of climbing, Harrington said.
 
“So much of our lives, we’re just living out of irrational fear – fear of things that might happen,” she said. “With climbing you’re always evaluating. How dangerous is this? Is it actually dangerous? And if it’s not, you have to be able to control that fear. I think it’s a really healthy way to see what you’re capable of.”
 
Harrington said Travis Parker, then an English teacher and the director of the climbing program, was one of the most influential people in her life during her time at Holderness School.
 
“Mr. Parker showed me a side of rock climbing that was in tune with the mind and the body and enjoying the movement of it. It was not about publicity. It wasn’t about attention or competition. It was just about connecting with yourself, and I really loved that,” she said. “He also gave me my first climbing rope, after the rock climbing season ended my senior year. That meant a lot to me, because it meant he trusted me to continue pursuing what I love. That showed me that he believed in me. It helped build this confidence in myself.”

Brette Harrington ’10 visits Rumney Rocks with the Holderness School climbing team. 


 
After graduating from Holderness School, Harrington attended University of British Columbia. She expanded her climbing experience, spending lots of time in nearby Squamish, as well as traveling to climbing destinations. She graduated with a degree in Spanish – and a sponsorship from Vancouver-based Arc’teryx – and headed south to Patagonia.
 
“My first trip to Patagonia was a highly successful season for me,” Harrington said. “I ended up climbing tons of towers, and I did a bunch of free soloing. I gained a lot of notoriety for the climbs I did that year.”
 
One of those climbs was the first free solo climb of the coveted Chiaro Di Luna route on the Aguja Saint Exupery – a 2,500-foot climb with a rating of 5.11a. When she started climbing, Harrington didn’t have free solo aspirations.
 
“It just sounds so objectively scary and so dangerous,” she said. “The first time I did a free solo climb, it was because I was in a situation that made free soloing safer than putting on a rope. Then I just became really comfortable with (free solo) climbing terrain that was under my ability. I wasn’t climbing anything challenging. It’s always something I really feel confident on.”
 
That confidence comes from years of experience and carefully planning each climbing route.
 
“Every time I’m in a different mountain range, I’m analyzing the mountains and deciding which lines would be most interesting to me, which ones haven’t been done before, which ones would be most suitable for my style,” Harrington said. “I keep these logged in my mind. Sometimes I write them down and take photos of them. Then it comes down to whether I can find the right partners, whether I’m feeling motivated for it.”
 
That planning has come in useful as Harrington and her partner, Elliott Bernhagen, embark on a new adventure: establishing and running Ascent Climbing Trips, a luxury travel company offering professional guiding in Sardinia, Mallorca, and Greece. Harrington said planning the climbing outings is easy for her, but the other aspects – arranging transportation, upscale hotels, and gourmet dinners – has required a lot of time and mental energy. Tackling diverse challenges is all in a day’s work for Harrington, though.
 
“My strength as a climber is versatility. I’m an elite athlete at all different styles, but I’m not the top tier of any of them. I can do ice climbing, rock climbing, endurance style, alpinism, ski mountaineering, bouldering, sport climbing,” she said. “Most climbers are specialists, where they can only do one. I can diversify. I can put up first ascents in Sardinia, or I can go climb in the Canadian Rockies in winter. I’ve spent tons of time developing all these skillsets. The downside to that is that you never really reach your full potential in one of them, because you’re always trying to maintain all of them. But in the end, that’s also a really great value in a climber – to be able to adapt.”
 
 

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