Women With Altitude

For women who love the mountains.

Women with Altitude is a Mountaineering Ireland initiative to encourage women to take on greater challenges in mountaineering, be they personal challenges, technical or leadership challenges. Established in 2011, this initiative promotes and facilitates women’s participation by providing support with skills training and leadership development, inspirational role models and opportunities to network.

Join us!

Women With Altitude 2023 is being held in the heart of Connemara at Petersburg OEC, Clonbur. It will be a weekend of adventure for all women interested in hillwalking and climbing.

All participants will be camping and we will also have halls and gazebos to congregate and shelter if needed. There will be lots of opportunity to meet new friends and gain knowledge and experience from our qualified female trainers and mountain leaders, including various courses to improve your skills as well as an opportunity to go hillwalking and climbing independently. So tell all your female friends, and if your friends can’t make it – come anyway, you will not be on your own!

For more information about the event, visit the Women With Altitude website here. To book your tickets for this fun weekend, click here.

Meet the Team

Rita Connell

Rita has been a regular hillwalker for over twenty years. She has walked extensively in Ireland and in many countries around the world. She is a member of Blayney Ramblers and is club secretary. Rita is currently on the Board of Directors of Mountaineering Ireland and is also a member of the WWA organising committee.

Colette Mahon

Colette enjoys exploring mountain areas, scrambling, and climbing of all types. Involved in mountaineering since 1990, she qualified as a Mountain Leader in 1996, a Rock climbing Instructor in 2015 and is a Mountain Skills Provider. A member of Wexford Hillwalking/Mountaineering Club, Colette is regularly involved in Navigation training, leading club walks/scrambles and also assists in running weekly Summer climbing sessions at the local crag for both new and experienced members.

Colette is a former member of the Board of Directors of Mountaineering Ireland.

Ruth Whelan

One of Ruth’s goals as Hillwalking Development Officer for Mountaineering Ireland is to increase female participation, but also to encourage the skill development of women and girls already involved in the sport. She has been actively involved in hillwalking and climbing for many years. exploring various mountains/crags in Ireland and abroad. Her studies at UCD also had a women in sport focus, having completed a research masters on the perception of women leaders in sport and a dissertation on the motives to participate in rock climbing and the risk involved. Ruth is delighted to be the Mountaineering Ireland’s staff representative for Women With Altitude.

Maike Juergens

Maike got into mountaineering through trail and mountain running. She is a keen mountain runner and always up for an adventurous day in the hills. She likes using and expanding her navigation and mountaineering skills in hill races and orienteering events or simply during long days walking in the hills in Ireland and abroad. Maike particularly loves the encouraging and welcoming atmosphere of Women With Altitude events. She has been a member of the organising committee since 2016.

Ursula Timmins

Ursula lives and works in Waterford and loves nothing more than spending her free time in the hills with friends. She is a qualified mountain leader and wilderness EMT and proud member of South Eastern Mountain Rescue (SEMRA) and Wexford Hillwalking/Mountaineering Club. Ursula is delighted to be involved in pushing the boundaries of women in sport through the Women with Altitude organising committee.