"The challenge is to myself and not to the mountain." -- "Clouds from Both Sides," by Julie Tullis
Alexandra David-Neel, the author of several books on Tibetan mysticism and a traveler in Buddhist domains such as Bhutan, Korea and Japan, immersed herself in esoteric studies for several years before setting out on a journey to Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, in 1923. She was the first woman to pass through the gates of the forbidden city. Part of her preparations included perfecting the ancient discipline of "thumo reskiang," by which a person's body temperature can be raised through meditation, a practice that was to save her life when she was buried in a snow drift.
Personal ambition this intense has often helped women travelers overcome not just physical obstacles, like mountains or extreme weather, but also social and religious taboos -- at least if their writings are anything to go by.