Episode 52: Skydiving Everest, High Mountain Summits and Empowering Female Rangers with Holly Budge

In this special episode of the On Adventure Podcast, I sit down with the unstoppable Holly Budge—an adventurer, conservationist, and the first woman to skydive over Mount Everest. With World Female Ranger Week in full swing, this conversation couldn’t be more timely. You can find out more about what these incredibly brave female rangers do here and why they are being celebrated this week.  Holly opens up about transforming fear into fuel, climbing the world’s highest peak solo, and how her bold expeditions became a platform for championing female wildlife rangers.

We explore her work with How Many Elephants and the founding of World Female Ranger Week, diving into the challenges and triumphs of the women on the front lines of conservation. Whether you’re an adventure junkie, a purpose-driven leader, or someone looking for that next spark of inspiration, this episode delivers the goods.

Timeline Summary:

[2:15] - How a single conversation launched Holly’s journey to skydive Everest
[6:47] - What it’s like to freefall at 29,500 feet over the Himalayas
[12:22] - Training your mindset for mental toughness and high-altitude endurance
[17:31] - The origin story of How Many Elephants and connecting passion with purpose
[21:18] - Launching World Female Ranger Week and elevating unheard voices
[27:05] - Grit, resilience, and the power of women protecting the wild
[35:40] - What Holly’s adventures have taught her about life and leadership

Links & Resources:

• Holly Budge: hollybudge.com

• World Female Ranger Week: worldfemalerangerweek.org

• How Many Elephants: howmanyelephants.org

• Follow Holly on Instagram: @hollybudge

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