The youngest mountain conquerors        

A toddler might have become the youngest person to reach the summit of Piz Badile, a 10,000-foot mountain. His reward? Haribo candy. Jackson Houlding, the 3-year-old who completed the impressive feat, trekked up the mountain, on the border of Switzerland and Italy, with his family last week. His sister Freya, 7, is reportedly now the youngest person to climb the mountain unaided.





The brother and sister duo are following in their parents’ footsteps of being avid mountain climbers. Leo, 40, has climbed some of the most treacherous peaks on the planet, and his wife Jessica, 41, shares a similar love for climbing.





For the parents, these hikes are no sweat, but for the kids, each climb is a huge accomplishment. Leo said it was “exceptional” that they completed this particular climb with their two young children, especially because Freya didn’t have any help.





The Houlding family completed the expedition on the 153rd anniversary of when the mountain was first summited on July 27, 1867. But the trip was more than just a celebration of accomplishments for Jackson and Freya on a historic day — Leo also celebrated his birthday on the mountain’s peak.





The climb up Piz Badile took the family four days, with one night spent in an alpine hut and the others spent in bivouacs, which are small, metal sheds. From their valley starting point, it took five hours to reach the Swiss hut, then they camped out on a shoulder of the mountain before a big day of the more difficult climbing. They reached the summit on the third day, then descended the next on the Italian side of the mountain.





Freya (wearing a green jacket) has become the youngest person to reach the summit of the 11,000ft-tall mountain unaided after her daredevil family scaled the treacherous peak.





The Houlding family from Cumbria began their climb on July 25th and took their time completing the route – spending one night in an alpine hut and another two in temporary campsites called bivouacs.





The family reached the summit on the third day of hiking – on July 27. In 2004, British climbers Jules Cartwright, 29, and Julie Colver , 43, fell to their deaths while descending Piz Badile.