Nestled at the top of the earth where the mountains meet the sea, a group of women gathered to carve out a different kind of space within the ski industry. One built on creativity, collaboration, and connection— to each other, to the elements, to themselves.
I sat next to the fire, entranced by the churning ocean, grateful for the plank of glass separating us from the storm. The electricity was out, but the days are long this far north, so no one was worried about losing light. As long as the fire stayed stoked, the humans near it would too. There was a collective calm exuding from every woman in the room. Bodies tired, souls nourished.
A few days ago, most of us were strangers. A wild concept considering the current state of connection. We had been in the mountains earlier that day. Despite the howling wind, the skin track flowed with meaningful conversation and comfortable silences, the invisible string always present. After touring up in a blizzard, the clouds opened up, and we were able to ski a glorious couloir in the sunshine.
Here I am dropping between two longtime inspirations: the illustrious Hedvig Wessel in front and a beyond half-term pregnant Michelle Parker behind me. We slarved and slashed spring corn straight to the sea. As we made our way through the squishy grass to the road, you could see the storm brewing. Dark ripples moved across the water towards us. The rain smacked us just as we were getting to the vans. Laughter streamed. I beamed.
I’m still beaming.
Hedvig Wessel, Sister Summit 2026 Elina Lehmkuhl
At the beginning of May, I had the pleasure of attending Sister Summit’s Amplify event in the Lyngen Alps of Northern Norway.
20 women from across the outdoor industry joined together. The group of professionals ranged from rookies with wide eyes to seasoned pros. There were elite mountain guides, an all-female media team of creatives, an Ayurvedic practitioner & chef, a beauty activist & entrepreneur, a facial therapist, and a holistic sports psychologist. Ages 23 to 50, the multifaceted group showed up to the event with open arms, open minds, and an intent to uplift.
The event was a five-day affair. We went up mountains, and we skied down mountains. We did yoga, meditated, shared stories, and nourished ourselves with healthy food and enlightening conversation. There were workshops on avalanche safety, crevasse rescue, and getting comfortable with the gear needed for big backcountry missions. In the evenings, there were panels where women would speak on their specific expertise. The topics ranged from entrepreneurship and brand identity to food as medicine and fueling the body in natural ways, to navigating mental health, releasing trauma, and finding a balanced state of mind.
Elina Lehmkuh
Hedvig Wessel and Lexi Dupont founded this non-profit organization with the vision of bringing women in sports together to reach their full potential, as athletes and as humans. They wanted to create an environment where women could share tools and knowledge without limitations and judgment. Their approach extends beyond skiing and into holistic wellness. In order to excel as an athlete in the mountains, all three pillars of mind-body-spirit should be nourished equally.
We talked about navigating the ski and snow industry, a historically male-dominated space. The conversations revealed that many of us weren’t alone in our experiences. The intergenerational perspectives shed light on both the progress that’s been made and the important work that still needs to be done.
Lexi Dupont, co-founder of Sister Summit and freeride skier, has been competing and filming professionally since 2009. She spoke on the isolation and scarcity mindset that often came from being the token woman, “It felt like brands in the industry were pinning us against each other, a bunch of qualified women competing for that one spot on their team.”
She and Hedvig wanted to create something opposite to that. “When women support other women, that’s when we thrive,” says Dupont. The level of riding inevitably goes up, and watching that collective connection happen in real time is a really cool thing to see.
This is a massive moment in women’s sports. It’s happening. People are opening their eyes to the cultural and financial benefits of tuning in and investing their energy. When talented, creative, powerful women come together, that’s when the magic happens. It benefits everyone involved. I felt that energy in Lyngen, and I felt the sky become the limit.
The experience in Lyngen was substantial for so many reasons. I left feeling supported, inspired, and determined to continue carving out spaces like this in the outdoor industry.
Caroline Ware George, a renowned mountain guide and alpinist from the Swiss Alps, said it best:
“Somewhere in the chaos, instinct returned. The mountains demanded presence, not fear. And with that came a quieter, steadier kind of power — not the hardened version of strength I learned to embody to belong in mountain culture, but something softer, more grounded, more whole. That’s what moved me most about Sister Summit. A space where softness and strength coexist. Where care, collaboration, emotion, nourishment, and vulnerability are valued as much as performance and adventure. A space that didn’t ask me to betray parts of myself in order to belong. I think many of us carry the exhaustion of trying to fit into spaces that were never built to hold all of who we are. This felt like the opposite of that. It felt like coming home.”
Sister Summit
Sister Summit is spearheading a comprehensive research project to highlight the gender disparities that currently exist in the snow and outdoor industry. “We want to put the concrete data behind the feeling,” says Dupont. Leading change through data-driven insights, they’re looking to analyze the industry to pinpoint areas that need improvement.
Sister Summit currently puts on three events per year. The Symposium is a community-oriented, single-day event open to the public. The Circle is a multi-day event catered to intermediate, non-sponsored athletes with an entrepreneurial mindset.
And Amplified, which just went down in Lyngen, is for pro-level athletes looking to tap into their full potential. They are a 100% women led and run non-profit, and support keeps the dream alive. A little can go a long way.
