Old Guys Backpacking

Old guys problems. Could you be a bit more specific?

Al, old guy problems are not always exclusive to old guys :) I would say life has kicked my *ss about as much as I can stand at times. You can lighten your load, travel fewer miles, and adapt in many ways but the most important thing for old or young to remember is that as your abilities are impaired you simply have to press on. If your heart is in it you will find a way to do what you love. It may not be in the manner in which you would choose but there is much satisfaction in simply not giving in to your physical or mental challenges. BPL got me back BPing after years. Simply lightening my load with all the great ideas here did the trick for me.

examples of lightening my load included

Lighter framed packs
Quilts
UL shelter
UL raingear
UL cook kit, food, H2O filter
Almost no extra clothing

and leave anything behind that will not see use the majority of any given trip.

jimmyb

Define "old".

I'm 71. My avatar photo was taken 3 years ago. I know 71 may be considered "advanced in age" but I gotta say I don't feel it much – a bit but not much.

EDIT: Household chores interrupted.
I was going to say that:
1. I've lightened my load a lot
2. kept up a regular exercise program
3. tried to hike at higher altitudes when I can (7,000 ft. +) to keep up my aerobic uptake
4. had a healthy diet

In recent years, I have tried to reduce my overall pack weight by one pound for every year that I continue backpacking. My base weight is already around ten pounds, but I can reduce the weight of consumables as well. Part of that is from reducing the total trip length in days and reducing the radically long-mile days that I used to do when I was younger.

Besides, I've found that the pursuit of wildlife photography does good things for my blood pressure. It's hard to get too wound up by watching deer roaming.

–B.G.–

A couple ideas occur to me, right off the top of my head.

Pacer Poles. Check ‘em out. IME they’ve brought on a subtle but very real paradigm shift which has affected my gait in a very positive way. Don’t worry about the weight: it’s almost all int eh grips and you won’t even notice.

Hammock Camping- Warbonnet XLC and Superfly in my case. Nopt expecially light, but well worth it for the ease of pitching (in the woods in New England, mostly) and getting in-and-out. It’s also nice to be able to sp[read out and move around a little under cover, e.g., when it’s raining. And I sleep great.

Thanks for starting this thread!

I'm 77 pushing 78 and did the JMT solo this past summer in 21 days including a rain-induced zero day near Forester Pass. Light gear and a good pack (Elemental Horizons Kalais) were important as was a good pair of trekking poles. Even more important IMO, is a well thought-out, year-around fittness regimen. I use a combination of daily walks, cycling, jogging, weight work and long day hikes to stay fit. It helps that I live in the desert SW so I can get out all year around. I'm currently maintaining the fittness regimen and am planning on a repeat in 2018. This coming summer I'm doing the West Highland Way in Scotland with my son and granddaughter.

Some great feedback guys. I'll try to address them one at a time:

"Define old" – This is a tough one because it can include so many subjective criteria. In my own case it came after a time that I had noticed that there were things that I used to do effortlessly and suddenly was having a little trouble with. There is also the inclusion of various physical maladies that are usually associated with old age. In my case the particular malady prevented me from dropping to a kneeling position without experiencing a lot of pain, or sitting cross legged on the ground. As you can probably imagine this would probably make getting in and out of a typical backpacker tent quite problematic. This comes to be especially problematic when you have to answer the call of nature up to 5 times a night and it's pouring down rain. The ability to enter/exit the Shangri-la 5 without squatting super low or crawling solved this problem for me.

Get a pee bottle for those nighttime calls of nature.

Young guys are always in a race to cover X miles in Y time. That and they usually counting grams on equipment (low number wins – like golf). But now that I'm "older", I take my time, take an extra day or two if I need/want to, and I don't scrimp on sleep comfort.

So I went up in carry weight by going to a hammock (WBBB) and I sleep great. I carry a fish pole and a sit pad – and use both. Nasty mountain peaks don't interest me anymore. I also carry enough chemicals and netting so that I can sit around thinking great thoughts in peace.

I carry a SPOT in TRACK mode and send two OK/CHECKIN messages a day – morning and night, which keeps my wife and kids in the loop.

After about a week I start missing my family and I come home. Older is better IMO.

I too have had to make some changes as time marches on. Most notably are the near elimination of BIG mile days, jumping from boulder to boulder, the move to a tent/shelter with a side door, and big comfy pad. I still carry a frameless pack but brought my base weight up to 10 lbs give or take.

The biggest "benefit" of getting older is that I don't require lots of food due to a slower metabolism and fewer hours on the trail. For trips up to 10 days or so, 1,800 calories a day is fine which allows me to carry 12 days of food rather easily and as a side benefit I lose 8-10lbs that stays off for months. For trips over a week or more, I add weight before the trip and rely on fat stores to get me through. I hike the same speed but not for as long and often stop for a dip several times a day.

Use it or lose it. The clock is ticking. Make it work and keep getting out. This will keep you young for as long as possible.

Al,

Here’s a thread from another website that got turned into a forum topic (Almost Over The Hill) after I posted it about 10 years ago. I didn’t choose the title.

here

Looks like they’ve archived the posts before 2008. In my original post I was asking how many older backpackers were out there. I was about 60 then and looking for inspiration from backpackers older than me.

One key thing I learned from examining the subsequent posts is the backpackers who were older than me then (and aren’t dead) are still older than me.

Remember: It's not how old you are that counts. It's how old you think you are.

–B.G.–

Here's an old joke.

Eighty year old well-to-do gentleman marries a 25 year old woman. His buddy asks how the eighty* year old could possibly have attracted such a young woman. He replies "I told her I was ninety."

I think laughter is a good tool for dealing with aging.

*Edited to correct for senile error in text which ruined joke.

"One key thing I learned from examining the subsequent posts is the backpackers who were older than me then are still older than me."

Maybe not.

billy

I've noticed the elevation tires me out quicker. My best mileage day was a few years ago, 21? miles along the PCT down to the Feather River. Jogging part of the last 4 miles helped quite a bit to get to camp before dark, then I had plenty of time left. I want to do the JMT sometime, maybe not until I retire in about 4 years, don't think I could do it in 15 days, 21 looks pretty good. The younger guys still are a little amazed I can keep up with them.
Duane

I'm young, but I think Ken's words are wise. I'm fond of this quote: "You don't stop moving because you get old, you get old because you stop moving."

As a testament to this, Dick Griffith skied hundreds of miles all over the Arctic in his late 60s, early 70s. Hell, he even completed the Alaska Mountain Wilderness Classic at the ages of 78 and 80. (!!!!)

No need to sell yourself short. Go get it!

As I get older I've found that Tylenol has become my new best friend. That, and a pee bottle.

Lighter pack weight has made it possible for me to continue backpacking, which is great because I love it. I doubt I have many more 20+ mile days in me but 10-15 mile days, when necessary, still get me to all the places I want to see.

Keep moving all year long, know your limitations, and you'll be fine for many years to come.

Billy,

Good point. Edited my post to clarify.

+1 on the Pacer Poles, and on the pre-emptive use of ibuprofen. The other thing I notice is hiking at elevation is much harder. I really start feeling it at 11K and slow down radically above 12K. Otherwise it's all about lightening the pack.

Guys, that pee bottle is something I've already discovered and it made a world of difference on cold rainy nights. When I went from my Tarptent Rainshadow 2 to the Shangri-la 5 it considerably increased my pack weight. I went into a very focused effort to lighten the pack. I replaced my Exped mattress with a lighter one from Thermorest, a lighter pot stand, ditched my MSR water filter for a Sawyer mini and right now I have everything spread out on the floor and looking for ways to further lighten the load.

Like one of the posters suggested, I've also stopped being so overly concerned with laying down miles and started doing things like bringing along my fly rod.

I thank goodness for this website and you all and your willingness to share. Lightening up has been key in my being able to resume hiking. I'm only 55 but the twenty year olds think I'm 40, haha. Good genes. And I'm a cancer survivor, that changes your perspective on longevity. Every six months I come out of the woods and have a complete check up, make a point of eating better, taking my vitamins and remain moving and active. And yes vitamin 'I' when needed helps but not overdoing or overloading or doing too many miles has helped me stay active and reduced my propensity for injuries. (Type 'A' here). Slowing down has been difficult. But I want to be backpacking and hiking as long as I possibly can. 30+ mile days are no longer something I want to do and I'm happy if I can do half that now comfortably. What I've lost in speed I make for with consistency. And I'm becoming very happy with that.

Since I have trouble kneeling, squatting and getting up when seated on the ground, I am looking into lightweight camp chairs. I was surprised and pleased to see Ryan Jordan do an article on camp chairs and to see that he sees their usefulness. I value his opinion on things, as his achievements speak for themselves.

side door on the tent .
+1

pee bottle.
a no-brainer.

pacer poles.
yes !

… and you can simply dump the spice tumeric (sp) on your food, and it tastes not terribly bad, and is a nifty anti-inflametent which makes my leg muscles feel new by the next morning.

this is the bestest thing i can add. tumeric. like, the wonder food.
no more motrin gut burn and feeling to puke.
—-
as far as getting old … wtf is it with older women all wanting to go to frikk'n hawaii ???
what is the fascination with that foul crowed place ? it's warm ?? we live in the central valley of california, give it a few months, i guarantee it will get … "warm".
when i was younger, i sent my lady with her family to hawaii. now it seems what they want is for ME to go there too. (yech)
i ain't going. not even if they pay the airfare. if my butt has to suffer that long on a plane, it better be headed north… or something.
ohh well.. time to sew.

cheers,
v.