Pochádza z Nepálu, vyrastala v Himalájach, ktoré obdivovala. Ako štvorročná sa presťahovala so strýkom do Káthmandú, kde mala získať základné vzdelanie. Hoci bola ďaleko od svojej rodnej dediny, jej láska k Himalájam ani trochu nepoľavila.
Už ako malé dievča snívala o tom, ako na tie blyšťavé hory lezie. Dosť nezvyčajný sen pre dievčatko. Horolezecká scéna v Nepále totiž nikdy neoplývala zastúpením žien, a preto bolo aj pre ňu ťažké naštartovať svoju kariéru. Najprv začala sprevádzaním turistov, nabrala bohaté skúsenosti, prax a zručnosti, a potom mohla odštartovať kariéru horolezkyne. V roku 2003 konečne zdolala svoj prvý vrchol – esteticky pozoruhodný Ama Dablam (6 812 m) v oblasti Khumbu. Nasledovala vlna prvenstiev, keď sa stala prvou nepálskou ženou, ktorá vyliezla na mnoho ďalších himalájskych vrcholov, vrátane viacerých výstupov na Mt. Everest (8 848 m).
Nedávno jej bola udelená cena Tenzing Hillary a Cena za statočnosť. Okrem toho získala mnoho ďalších prestížnych ocenení. Keď sa v roku 2010 stala matkou, dala si v horolezectve päťročnú prestávku. Po nej však pokračovala a odvtedy zdolala mnoho vrcholov, tým ostatným je Kančendžonga (8 586 m). Má chuť vyliezť na ne ešte raz a plánuje zdolať všetkých štrnásť vrcholov nad 8 000 metrov. Ako sama hovorí: „Horolezectvo je pre mňa viac ako len vášeň. Pomáha mi ukázať ostatným, že žiadna hora nie je príliš veľká, ak máte sen dostať sa na vrchol a odhodlanie pokračovať aj napriek ťažkostiam. Život je rovnaký – stretávame sa s mnohými ťažkosťami a prebíjame sa cez ne.”

Born in the rural village of Patle in the Okhaldhunga district of Nepal, Maya Sherpa grew up admiring the Himalayas. The breeze that swept from the mountains brushed against her face and that made her fall in love with the mountains even more. The story caught a break as she moved to Kathmandu with her uncle at the tender age of four for primary education. While she was now far from her village, her passion for the Himalayas did not waver a bit.
Maya clearly remembers she was fixated on scaling those gleaming landmarks since she was a little girl. A pretty unusual dream for anyone and even more so for a little girl. As such, the mountaineering scene in Nepal also had not seen a great deal of women participation; it was difficult for her to kick start her career. So, she first started as a trekking guide and gathered ample experience, training, and skills to launch forward her career as a mountaineer. In 2003, she finally scaled her first peak, which was the aesthetically remarkable Ama Dablam (6812m) in the Khumbu region. Next, a flurry of ‚firsts‘ followed as she became the first Nepali woman to scale many other Himalayan peaks, including multiple ascents of the Mt. Everest (8848m.
She was recently awarded the Tenzing Hillary award and Bravery award. Likewise, she has collected many other prestigious accolades and awards as well. She took a 5- year hiatus from mountaineering when she became a mother in 2010. However, she continued after her motherhood break and has since scaled many mountains, including the most recent, Mt. Kanchenjunga (8586m). She is raring to go once again and plans to conquer all the 14 peaks above the height of 8000 meters. In her own words, she says, “Mountaineering is more than just a passion to me. It helps me make others realize that no mountain is too big if you have the dream to reach the top and the dedication to continue through the difficulties. Life is also the same since we come across many hardships and battle through them.”