Alison Chadwick-Onyszkiewicz

Alison Chadwick-Onyszkiewicz (1942 – 17 October 1978) was a British mountaineer, painter, and lithography lecturer. She made the first ascent of Gasherbrum III, at the time the highest unclimbed mountain in the world. Chadwick-Onyszkiewicz died along with her climbing partner, Vera Watson, during an attempt on Annapurna I Central.

Early life Chadwick-Onyszkiewicz was born in Birmingham and grew up in Cornwall. She studied at Slade School of Fine Arts in London where she learned to climb. In 1969, she taught lithography at the College of Exeter.

Climbing career Chadwick-Onyszkiewicz's early climbs were in Wales, England, and the Alps, making ascents of the north faces of Piz Palü, the Aiguille de Triolet, and . After moving to Poland with her husband and climbing partner Janusz Onyszkiewicz, she climbed extensively in the Tatras, including the eastern wall of Mnich, the northern wall of , and a winter ascent of the northern wall of Niżnie Rysy and Mieguszowiecki Middle (first winter ascent). She was known for her cool head and early commitment to alpine style mountaineering, which involves moving quickly and independently towards summits, at a time when large siege style expeditions were more common.

In 1972, during the Polish expedition in Hindu Kush, she ascended both Aspe Safed and Noshaq. Based on these climbs, she was selected for the 1975 Polish Gasherbrum Expedition. It was initially designed as a women's only expedition to Gasherbrum III led by Wanda Rutkiewicz, but a simultaneous men's expedition to Gasherbrum II was refused a permit and the two merged. She made the first ascent of Gasherbrum III (7952m), the world's highest unclimbed peak, with a mixed team consisting of her, Rutkiewicz, Onyszkiewicz, and . During this expedition she gained the British height record for women.

Despite these successes, the achievements of women's climbing continued to be downplayed, with critics noting the presence and contributions of men on female-driven expeditions.

Annapurna

In 1978, she took part in the American Women's Himalayan Expedition to Annapurna, the tenth-highest mountain in the world. It consisted of all female climbers, designed to give women the opportunity to climb a major peak at a time when they were often excluded from expeditions. Chadwick-Onyszkiewicz was one of the few non-Americans and was considered one of the best climbers. Annapurna had very few ascents at the time, and the climbers found it to be more treacherous than anticipated, with multiple avalanches causing severe delays in their progress. It is now considered the world's most deadly mountain, with the highest death rate of any 8000er. During the expedition Chadwick-Onyszkiewicz noted, "It's the most dangerous mountain I've been on," in a letter to her husband.

The expedition was successful, with Vera Komarkova, Irene Beardsley (formerly Miller), Mingma Tsering Sherpa, and Chewang Ringjin Sherpa reaching the summit. However, Chadwick-Onyszkiewicz was keen for a female-only team to succeed, so she and climbing partner Vera Watson made a second summit push to the unclimbed second peak.

Personal life In 1971 Chadwick-Onyszkiewicz married Polish mathematician and mountaineer Janusz Onyszkiewicz, her frequent climbing partner.

Notable climbs Mięguszowiecki Middle (first winter ascent) Gasherbrum III (first ascent) Noshaq, Hindu Kush