In a year filled with powerful storytelling about mountains, wilderness, and human endurance, one title rose above the rest. Thirty Below: The Harrowing and Heroic Story of the First All-Women’s Ascent of Denali by Cassidy Randall has been officially named the overall winner of the 2025 Banff Mountain Book Award. The book’s triumph marks a milestone moment not only for adventure literature, but also for the long-overlooked legacy of women in mountaineering history.
Randall’s work resurrects the extraordinary yet under-recognized story of the first all-women’s expedition to Denali—North America’s highest and most unforgiving peak. Through deep reporting and gripping narrative tension, Thirty Below captures the emotional turmoil, unity, and sheer resilience of the climbers as they face brutal temperatures, hazardous conditions, and the entrenched social barriers of a male-dominated mountaineering world. Beyond documenting a historic ascent, the book becomes a reflective study of the physical and societal limits that these women were forced to challenge as they carved out space within technical, scientific, and adventurous professions historically closed to them.
The award solidifies Thirty Below as one of the most important and relevant outdoor narratives of the year, celebrating both its literary strength and its contribution to representation in global mountaineering history.
Other Winners of Banff Mountain Book Award
The recognition of Thirty Below coincides with the announcement of the 2025 National Outdoor Book Award (NOBA) recipients, which highlight a wide range of outstanding works across nature, exploration, and environmental storytelling.
In the Outdoor Literature category, A Marriage at Sea by Sophie Elmhirst earned top honors. The book tells an intimate and emotionally charged true story of a married couple who survived weeks adrift in the Pacific Ocean after their sailboat sank. The narrative was widely praised, with judges calling it one of the strongest nonfiction adventure works of the year.
The Journeys category recognized two winners. The first, Killing the Buddha on the Appalachian Trail by John Turner, chronicles a long-distance hiker’s introspective journey along the Appalachian Trail while grappling with aging, failure, faith, and the search for meaning. The second, North to the Future by Ben Weissenbach, follows a 42-day expedition through Alaska alongside environmental researchers, blending physical endurance with ecological insight.
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In History / Biography, two titles received awards. A Woman Among Wolves by Diane K. Boyd presents a compelling memoir spanning four decades of wolf research in remote wilderness areas, revealing the intricate relationship between humans and wildlife. Meanwhile, The White Ladder: Triumph and Tragedy at the Dawn of Mountaineering by Daniel Light delves into the pioneering era of climbing from the 1800s to the early 20th century, documenting the triumphs and devastating losses that shaped the foundation of modern alpinism.
The Natural History Literature award went to Born of Fire and Rain: Journey into a Pacific Coastal Forest by M. L. Herring, a rich combination of personal storytelling and scientific exploration of the Pacific Coast’s evolving landscapes.
In the Nature and Environment category, Saving the Big Sky—authored by Bruce A. Bugbee, Robert J. Kiesling, and John B. Wright—secured top honors. The book chronicles fifty years of land conservation efforts in Montana, supported by archival photographs, historical documentation, interviews, and detailed maps. Two additional titles received silver medals in this category: Into Whooperland by Michael Forsberg, focusing on conservation of the endangered whooping crane, and People the Planet Needs Now: Voices for Justice, Science, and a Future of Promise by Dudley Edmondson, highlighting urgent calls for environmental justice and scientific advocacy.
Together, the 2025 NOBA winners illustrate the extraordinary breadth of storytelling flourishing in contemporary outdoor literature.
The Significance of the Award
The Banff Mountain Book Award is among the most prestigious recognitions in global mountain and adventure writing. Presented annually as part of the Banff Centre Mountain Film and Book Festival in Canada, the award honors excellence in research, narrative strength, historical significance, and contributions to understanding the natural world. It has long been viewed as a benchmark for the highest standards of mountain literature.
By naming Thirty Below the overall winner in 2025, the jury highlights the enduring importance of stories that broaden the lens through which we view exploration. The recognition is not only a testament to Cassidy Randall’s skill as a storyteller, but also an affirmation that narratives of women’s achievements, identity, and survival in extreme environments deserve a central place in the global literary canon.
With this win, Thirty Below joins a distinguished lineage of influential works recognized at Banff — and cements the story of the first all-women’s ascent of Denali as a defining contribution to the history of mountaineering. (Sulung Prasetyo)
