On Nov 4, just after 11 p.m., Emily Harrington freed Golden Gate, a grade VI 5.13 route on the southwest face of El Capitan, in 21 hours 13 minutes.

Alexander and Thomas Huber made the first free ascent of the 36-pitch route in 2000. Golden Gate follows the first half of Freerider, tackling 8 pitches of slab on the Freeblast variation and then continuing up through the Hollow Flake and into the difficult Monster Offwidth. From El Cap Spire, the line involves a hard pitch moving down and right across the wall. The Downclimb (5.13-) is one of the four crux pitches. The route then traverses into an immaculate expanse of golden granite and a stack of three hard pitches. The Move (5.13-) features a short, albeit difficult V6/7 boulder problem. The Golden Desert (5.13-) takes thin laybacks to the routes finishing crux, The A5 Traverse (5.13-) a dizzying and powerful traverse across crimps and slopers. From there a few hundred feet of easier, albeit dangerous, 5.11 climbing on hollow flakes remains.

Harrington first freed Golden Gate over six days in 2015 and then began considering an in-a-day ascent. “It’s been a solid two-year project but was always in my head after doing [Golden Gate] the first time,” said Harrington.

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Golden Gate ✨ Free 💫 In A Day ⚡️ 📸 @jonglassberg / @jess_talley / @louderthan11 I never believed I could actually free climb El Cap in a day when I first set the goal for myself. It didn’t seem like a realistic objective for me. I didn’t have the skills, fitness, or risk profile to move so quickly over such a large piece of stone. But I chose it exactly for that reason. Impossible dreams challenge us to rise above who we are now to see if we can become better versions of ourselves. On Nov 4 I started climbing with @alexhonnold at 1:34am, caught between my own internal drama of achieving a life goal and the more prevalent one of the elections – both unfolding in parallel ways in my brain. I knew I was in for a big day – but that’s exactly why I was there. I wanted to find my limit and exist in it and fight beyond it. A nasty slip on the 13a Golden Desert pitch almost took my resolve – a deep gash on my forehead left me bloody and defeated. I pulled on again, part of me not really wanting to stay on the wall, the other part gathering courage and flow. I kept thinking “why am I still hanging on?” The next pitch was the A5 traverse, where I failed last year. This time it was not my limit. I fought hard but with flawless movements in the dark. I cried at the belay – it could happen this time….The final 5 pitches felt scary in my current state but I pulled over the final lip at 10:30pm in disbelief. There’s a lot more to say but mostly I wanted to express my gratitude for the love and support from friends, family, and strangers. I feel the love so intensely right now. Thank you all 🙏🏻 Massive thanks to @alexhonnold for climbing with me over these years, you’ve inspired me to think bigger and believe in myself in ways you cannot imagine. To @jonglassberg for your friendship, creativity, and ability to capture a story while at the same time keeping it light and always fun. And finally to my best friend, partner, lover, fave human of all time @adrianballinger – your support and love for me through the darkness and the light has never wavered. I love you endlessly ❤️❤️❤️ More to come!!! @thenorthface / @kodiakcakes / @petzl_official / @lasportivana

A post shared by ᴇᴍɪʟʏ ʜᴀʀʀɪɴɢᴛᴏɴ (@emilyaharrington) on Nov 7, 2020 at 8:06am PST