Meet Allie Pepper
Having recently turned 50, Allie Pepper is climbing stronger than ever. But her latest summit isn’t just about breaking altitude records, it’s about reclaiming her life.
Australian high-altitude mountaineer Allie Pepper has spent a huge part of her life chasing the clouds and pushing her limits. Get It Magazine spoke with Allie to hear about a recent summit, Kanchenjunga (the world’s third-highest peak at 8,586 metres!) and to learn more about her journey after a series of deeply personal challenges that nearly saw her hang up her climbing boots for good.
“I was at rock bottom,” Allie says, reflecting on a time not too long ago when everything seemed to collapse at once. “I’d lost my dad unexpectedly, my marriage had ended, and I was going through severe menopause symptoms. depression, night sweats, insomnia. I didn’t feel like myself. I wasn’t sure if I could ever climb again.”
Like so many women, menopause hit Allie by surprise, and it almost ended her climbing journey. At first, Allie didn’t even realise what was happening to her. “I was 46 and had no idea my symptoms were menopause. I saw three doctors before I found someone who understood. Most GPs aren’t trained in menopause properly. It’s so under-recognised.”
Eventually, she connected with a Welfem-trained doctor and began hormone therapy, and Allie tells me: “It absolutely changed my life. Within a month, the depression, insomnia, and joint pain started to ease. After a year, I felt like my body had reversed in time. I could build muscle again, recover from training: it was like night and day.”
Allie had already completed major climbs in her earlier career, including her first 8,000m summit in 2007, but the dream of completing all 14 of the world’s 8,000-metre peaks without supplemental oxygen (a feat achieved by only a handful of people worldwide) had always burned in the background. “The project was always in my heart, but I hadn’t fully committed. After everything I went through – it just felt like now or never.”
As her peaks have progressed, it hasn’t all been smooth sailing. For Allie’s Kanchenjunga climb, funding came late & the weather window was closing. And while Allie had planned to summit without bottled oxygen, as she had on five other 8,000m peaks, she made the call to use it. “It wasn’t safe without it,” she says. “I was on the edge of a storm at over 8,500 metres. I wanted to survive and come down.”
“It’s so extreme up there” Allie explains, “Without supplemental oxygen, your brain is operating with just a third of the oxygen it’s used to. Even when conditions are perfect, your legs can give way. This climb wasn’t about the view — it was survival.”
Behind that physical strength, though, is a different kind of work, an ongoing commitment to deep emotional and mental training. “I worked with a life coach for over a year when I began seriously preparing for the 14 Peaks,” Allie explains. “I needed to master my mind, to stop attaching to fear, to outcomes. I meditate daily. I train mentally, emotionally, and spiritually: not just physically.”
Now, she says, “I know my body so well. I feel better at 50 than I did at 40. Stronger. Sharper. I’m climbing better than I ever have – better than most men I’ve climbed with. Only one Australian man has achieved more in the 8,000m peaks than I have.”
The milestone of turning 50 – which coincided with her descent from Kanchenjunga – was a calm and quiet celebration. “We drove for hours that day and stayed in this remote hotel. I went to sleep at 8pm. The next day we celebrated in Kathmandu with some incredible female climbers. It was perfect.”
She laughs when asked if this was the life she imagined at 30. “Not at all. But I also never imagined how much was possible!”
As this next chapter of her life unfolds, Allie is working on a short film about the climb and considering a full documentary. “This journey is about more than mountains. It’s about showing people that it’s never too late. We are capable of way more than we think. You can go through the hardest chapter of your life and still find your way to the summit.”
For those standing at their own crossroads, wondering what’s next? Allie suggests turning the mirror back on yourself:
“It’s a good time to ask: how do I want to live the rest of my life? It’s not just about being thin or fit. It’s about being well: body, mind and soul. That’s a choice we get to make, every single day.”
