Eva Steinwald said age is just a number. She made it to the summit of Mount Everest in May.👏
MERIDIAN, Idaho — Eva Steinwald is from Meridian, Idaho. She is a realtor and the owner of a local karate studio. Over the last several years, she has become an elite mountain climber.
She just returned to Idaho after summitting Mount Everest at the record-setting age of 63.
“You know, the crazy part is, I’ve always loved the outdoors, but I’ve never had a passion for crazy climbing, what I’m doing right now,” Steinwald said. “It was like Everest was like a different planet. It’s like the moon, who climbs that, right?”
She did climb it. This all started seven years ago. That is when Steinwald’s life changed in the blink of an eye.
“It really happened back in 2018 when my husband of 26 years passed away unexpectedly. And I realized that life is very short. It’s a gift, and I wanted to experience life,” she said.
Her husband’s devastating loss pushed her to do something totally out of her comfort zone.
“So, I decided to get over my fear of heights, and that’s when I heard about Mt Borah,” Steinwald said.
Borah Peak, also known as Mount Borah or Beauty Peak, is the highest summit in Idaho.
“When I reached the top of Mt Borah,” she said, “I was just bawling, and I was like, I can do this. So what else can I do? That started it, and then someone told me about Mt. Rainier. Mt Ranier is a little over 14,000 feet, and Borah is 12,000. I thought if I can do Borah then I can do Mt Rainier.”
She conquered Mount Rainier, too.
“It was like a fire in my belly, because I felt alive and I knew that’s what I wanted, and it was a way to honor my husband,” Steinwald said.
She said that she then set her sights on even bigger mountains.
“I’ve always wanted to go to Nepal. Well, I saw they had the Everest Base Camp trek with a mountain climb called LoBuche,” she said. “That was 20k feet, and I thought I can do that, I had no idea how hard it would truly be. When I did that, I decided to do the seven summits to bring awareness to global warming.”
The Seven Summits comprise the highest mountain peaks on each of the continents. Steinwald plans to climb all seven by the age of 70,
She has climbed Aconcagua in Argentina in January 2024, Denali in Alaska in June 2024, and Mount Everest in Nepal in May 2025. She still has four to go. She documented it all on social media for her family and friends, and other climbers.
“I had many followers that were living through me, and they wanted to experience climbing Everest,” Steinwald said. “I loved reading the comments, and that gave me motivation and energy, and I really enjoyed that part, and it kept me connected.”
She said the push to the summit of Everest was grueling, but Steinwald was determined to get there.
“You need to be very diligent which expedition company you go with so you have good logistics and good support. I had a sherpa from Camp 4 in the death zone to the summit that was behind me, and his only job was to watch my oxygen tank. Your body has to be willing to acclimate,” Steinwald said. “We saw dead bodies along the way, so you realize how serious this mountain is. It can be deadly.”
She said her husband was with her in spirit every step of the way.
“I have his dog tags from Vietnam, and every time I climb, I wear his dog tags. I take him with me. I talk to him,” she said. “That definitely was a big part of my healing.”
Steinwald said initially reaching the summit of Everest was surreal.
“You see all this color,” she said. “It’s like wow. Prayer flags, when you see the prayer flags, you know you are on the summit. I was so relieved, I have goosebumps thinking about it. I was so grateful that I made it, that I was safe. I mean you’re at 29,035 feet.”
After her climb, she was named the oldest American woman to make it to the top of Everest at the age of 63.
“The number, your age, is just a number,” Steinwald said. “I feel better now, mentally and physically, than I did when I was 30.”
But her record was short-lived. A few days later, Steinwald discovered that another American woman in her sixties had broken her record. She got in contact with the new record holder and congratulated her.
“Another expedition company reported that they had a lady who is 66. She lives in Texas,” Steinwald said.
She said she wants to inspire people of all ages and those who have experienced loss to chase their dreams and live.
“Take time to mourn, but then step forward, because the only time we have is right now. We don’t have what we had yesterday, we don’t know what we will have tomorrow,” she said. “We all have our Everests, whatever your Everest is, if it’s getting your college degree or going back to school, or running a 5k. Whatever it is, believe in your dream. Don’t listen to naysayers, believe in your heart. Baby steps, little goals, and you can get there. I give myself grace, you need to give yourself grace, too.”
She said her life’s mission is summed up in her favorite hashtag #CantMustDid. She said when you are chasing a goal, you might think you can’t, but you can. Steinwald said her message is you must, and you will.
Her goal is to climb all seven summits by the age of 70, and she is currently seeking a sponsor to help her achieve this.
Her next Everest? To write a book about her incredible life.
You can follow Eva on Facebook and Instagram at @7summitsx70