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SALT LAKE CITY — Why would a 61-year-old woman who is afraid of heights decide to climb Mount Everest?
For Carol Masheter, of Salt Lake City, it was the immense satisfaction she discovered from overcoming fears.
In 2013, Masheter became the oldest woman to reach the seven highest summits on each continent. She told her inspiring story this week to a group of senior citizens at a luncheon to promote what she calls "optimal aging" through continued activity.
At age 50, Masheter "lost everything" when her mother died, her boyfriend cheated on her and her job failed. The weight of her losses caused her health to decline. Anxiety, depression, weight gain and stomach pain plagued her every day.
When doctors told her the health issues were only stress-related, and not some incurable disease, Masheter said she realized she had a choice. She could continue in a downward spiral or she could find a way to break through the fog she found herself in.
And that wouldn't be the last fog she would break through.
After 10 years of intensive mental, emotional and physical training, which included yoga, bike-riding and high-altitude mountaineering, Masheter reached the peak of one of the world's seven summits — Aconcagua, the highest peak in South America.
Standing on the summit of Aconcagua in strong winds almost blowing her over, Masheter said she shook her fist to the sky and screamed, "Here's to you, Dad! Thank you for the good things that you taught me, but here is where I depart from your path."
Masheter's father died from his second heart attack at the same age Masheter was when she summitted Aconcagua. It was then that she committed she would not let her father's past become her future. She wanted to break through health risks and negativity toward life, and instead work hard to overcome the fears that she said held her back for so long.
Masheter said she finds joy and accomplishment in overcoming fears.
What she didn't know at the time is that Aconcagua would be only a "practice peak" for the remaining six mountains she would summit.
At age 61, Masheter joined an international expedition with a mountaineering guide company to climb Mount Everest. Her fellow climbers in the group nicknamed her "Silver Fox."
When her fear of heights and anxiety would flare up, Masheter said she turned to principles she learned from her yoga training. "Breathe in, breath out," she would repeat to herself.
If that didn't work, Masheter turned to chanting and prayer.
And when she finally reached the summit at 29,035 feet above sea level, Masheter said she felt as if she had climbed "above heaven."
Gazing into the distance, overlooking clouds and hundreds of lower peaks, Masheter said she felt "deep humility and immense joy."
"Time stood still," she said. "It was the happiest day of my life."
But during the descent, Masheter suffered a spell of blindness, creating a high risk as she stumbled down the steep and icy terrain. She said everything around her turned white and she thought it would be impossible to make it back.
But somehow she did make it. Masheter never found out what caused the blindness, but she continued on throughout the next five years to complete the world's seven summits.
At age 66, she became the oldest woman in the world to reach the seven highest peaks on each continent.
And she says her adventures are nowhere near over.
Masheter, now almost 70, is debating where her next "climb" will take her. She plans to do some "adventuring" in Antarctica in the meantime.
Masheter was born in Southern California and lived much of her adult life in various states along the East Coast. Twenty-six years ago, Masheter moved to Utah, where she now spends nearly every weekend in the mountains.
"I've discovered I'm my best person when I'm in the mountains," she said, "I feel enriched."
Despite her fear of heights, stage fright and writer's block, Masheter is now a climber, inspirational speaker and author of two books: "No Magic Helicopter: An Aging Amazon's Climb of Everest" and "Brightest of Silver Linings: Climbing Carstensz Pyramid at Age 65."
For aging adults, and for anyone embarking on a challenging journey, Masheter counsels, "Start slow and go small."
She said it's important to take things one step at a time. And when you fail, "the hardest thing is to keep going and try again," Masheter said.
Lastly, Masheter encourages all to "find the silver lining, and be grateful."
