Climber Conquers Peak and Cancer

For Karyn Blackmore-Hagy, climbing Mt. Whitney--the tallest mountain in the contiguous United States--was more than a trek. It was a mission of hope.

Blackmore-Hagy, with her husband Rick, hiked to the top of the 14,495-foot peak in August to raise money and awareness for breast cancer.

The 34-year-old Westlake Village woman learned she had the disease three years ago, after the birth of her second child, when she went for a mammogram. She went through massive amounts of chemotherapy before emerging as a survivor.

Then she went from survivor to mountain climber as part of an organization called “Expedition Inspiration,” a nonprofit group that helps raise money and awareness for breast cancer.

Climbers received donations through “tribute flags” hung around their campsite at each stop, bearing the names of loved ones who had died or family and friends who helped them through their ordeals.

“The flags caught a lot of attention from passersby who would stop and ask questions,” Blackmore-Hagy said. “We would always be left with a big cheer, encouragement and endless praise for our cause.”

Blackmore-Hagy and her companions reached the summit after four days, but not without some difficulty--including altitude sickness.

“As we reached the last 500 feet, I was in tears--the top was so close I could almost touch it,” she said. “All of a sudden, without warning, I felt dizzy and nauseous. I was having difficulty taking breaths, and I began to panic.”

She said she regained her bearings when a friend told her to think about how much she hated cancer and how hard she had fought through chemotherapy to beat the disease.

In her journal after the event, she wrote that the climb was not “a victory of survival, but one of personal achievement and success. I am proving to myself that I can achieve the ultimate physical victory after cancer. I will make it to the top of that mountain if it’s the last breath I take.”