Seven-year-old Joey Danger Evermore reached the summit of El Capitan in Yosemite National Park on May 22, 2026, becoming the youngest person to do so. But the achievement has also raised questions about how the climb was carried out and how much of it should be considered a traditional climbing record.

Joey spent five days climbing El Capitan with his family.

Joey began the ascent at age six and turned seven during the climb. He climbed alongside his father, Joe Evermore, and his older brother Sylvan, with a larger support team helping them reach the summit.

The family used fixed ropes and ascenders, a technique known as jugging. A pitch is one section of a climbing route between two points where climbers can stop, secure their ropes, and prepare for the next section. El Capitan’s long routes are divided into many such sections.

Joey did not climb each section of rock independently. Experienced climbers first climbed the pitches and fixed ropes along the route. Joey then used an ascender, a device that grips the rope, to pull himself upward along those ropes.

The climb lasted several days and involved cold temperatures, limited food and water, long periods on the wall, and very little rest. Joey’s family also filmed the expedition for a planned documentary.

The final section became particularly difficult. Yosemite Search and Rescue was carrying out a separate operation on the mountain, and the Evermore group was asked to stop temporarily. According to accounts from people involved, the children were cold and exhausted before completing the final pitch.

Joey eventually reached the summit during the early hours of May 22.

The record is unusual because Joey did not lead the climbing pitches.

The record has sparked debate in the climbing community because Joey’s ascent differed from many climbs normally described as climbing El Capitan.

Several experienced climbers were part of the support team. They led the pitches, fixed the ropes, and helped move heavy equipment. Joey and his brothers then ascended the fixed ropes using their ascenders.

This distinction matters because climbing El Capitan can involve very different levels of participation. A climber might lead pitches, place protection, haul equipment, and manage the route, or they might ascend ropes that someone else has already installed.

Joey’s father has acknowledged that his sons were not performing at the same level as experienced El Capitan climbers. He described their achievement as an ascent rather than claiming Joey climbed the wall in the traditional sense.

The support team’s role was also largely absent from the family’s social-media coverage, which became one source of criticism.

Questions also arose about permits and the use of paid climbing support. Climbing reported that the nine-person group exceeded the eight-person limit for an overnight wilderness climbing permit and that some of the people working on the expedition were not certified Yosemite guides.

El Capitan has challenged climbers for decades.

El Capitan is one of Yosemite’s most recognizable rock formations. Its granite face rises about 3,000 feet from the valley floor and was long considered extremely difficult to climb.

Warren Harding and his team completed the first ascent of the Nose route in 1958 after spending 45 days on the wall. Since then, thousands of climbers have attempted routes on El Capitan, with some losing their lives in falls, rockfalls and other accidents.

Joey’s achievement follows several other young climbers who reached El Capitan at unusually early ages. His older brother Sam previously became the youngest person to make a rope ascent at eight. Other children, including Selah Schneiter and Pearl Johnson, also set records on El Capitan as children.

Joey’s ascent has therefore added another chapter to the history of young climbers on the mountain. At the same time, the debate surrounding his record highlights an important distinction: reaching the summit and independently climbing a route are not necessarily the same achievement.