Time – Temps – Terrain for 60+ Hikers/Backpackers

Another inreach mini person here (though if I were buying new today I’d seriously consider the Zoleo). I’ll smash up against 65 this year. I no longer do winter backpacking, but that’s because of the very short day window and not because of age. Like others I’m also not a fan of super hot/humid weather, so I’m not generally out in the dog days of summer. Sure, I’m slower than I used to be, but that’s never bothered me much, I’m generally not in a hurry any more after retiring in ’15 (for the second time).

I did a lot of backpacking in PA when I lived on the east coast, my favorite was always the Black Forest Trail, but I enjoyed all of the trails I did there. Now that I’m on the west coast, most of my backpacking has been in CA (though I live in WA), though I’ve done some in WA and OR as well (and ID and WY).

I haven’t really noticed a serious degradation in my capabilities as I’ve aged, but that’s probably because I was never an athlete, so I never had that much distance to fall! :-)

It’s all about appreciating where you are and what you can still do, which sounds like the philosophy the OP follows.

Jerry – use your smart phone to message through your inReach mini! very easy. Pushing up and down arrows is just silly and agreed, a pain. I carry an inReach because I hike alone a lot, and I also fall down a lot. Falling started happening about 5 years ago; I’m 58. I do yoga, and strength training, as well as cardio as much as I can fit it into my schedule. But I still fall a lot; I’m just a clutz.  Last summer on the TRT I fell when coming down the highest point on trail, Relay Peak. I was so proud of my time getting up there from Gray Lake, and the trail up was a bit sketch in spots. So then I just slid on some gravel atop a smooth boulder, and down I went. Lots of bruises. And language.

While my husband doesn’t know that bad things happen to people (he never worries about me when I’m hiking), my brother and his family always want my pings from the inReach when I’m out there alone. They are my pit crew when I’m hiking in the Sierra, so they walk me 5 miles from the trailhead and always look soooo worried when they go back to their car. Last time they met other hikers headed out and asked them to watch out for me! The inReach also gives me a nice map of where I’ve camped each night, which is fun when I get home.

What else has changed since getting older – I care less and less about work, not that I don’t do my best when there, but I’m always happy to take time off, and I don’t think about it when I’m outdoors. At all. I dislike our cold dark winters more and more, but I don’t mind being out in the snow. I just miss the sunshine more than ever before. I’m definitely more sore from a hard day’s hike than I ever used to be, no matter how much I train.

The older I get, the longer I want to stay out there. I do weekend trips only because work interferes; otherwise I would stay out for weeks. I could never finish something like the AT or the PCT because I’m too slow, but it would be fun to do as much as possible, just to be out there for a long time. I do miss my husband and my dog, but my kids are grown and busy (I miss them all the time though). I don’t miss work, the news, events, holidays, or anything else really. I never get bored outside the way I sometimes do at home.

Perspective changes more than anything else, I guess.

yeah, it isn’t that difficult to pair phone with inreach mini, then it’s pretty easy to compose arbitrary messages

but usually my phone is off and being charged when the inreach mini is finally ready, so I have to turn the phone back on,…

usually I just send that one preset message which is easier

I’m probably just whining about this function, and over-all, the inreach mini is really useful

So in Jerry’s last post there was a link (not his doing) to the Inreach Mini at REI. And there was a producer warning button for California residents. I clicked it . . .

Apparently the device can cause cancer ;-)

BPL conveniently replaces some keywords with links.  I assume BPL would make a small amount from people clicking on it.  It is convenient if someone wants more info about that product

I have noticed some people are annoyed by this but I’m fine with it.

“Another problem is it’s inconvenient to compose a message”

OK that was the all time biggest understatement in history. Fortunately there are a couple of work arounds like carefully planned pre-set messages and/or the mobile phone pairing app which lets you use the phone keyboard to compose a message as well as use the screen to view the map.

almost 71. What’s everyone complaining about?  hee hee.

Nick’s a libertarian? shocked I tell ya! Shocked! Waiting for a photo of the green comet! Fingers crossed.

“Nick’s a libertarian? ”

Yep. the soul of a librarian trapped in the body of a starry eyed libertine.

I will be 73 when I hit the northern 400 miles of the AT to finally finish the trail after 3 years hiking closer to home during Covid. Like others I’m more sensitive to temperature but not outrageously so. I’ve used a Spot, now an Inreach not just for safety purposes but because my wife and family like to follow along. I run/walk/hike daily so along with UL practices I’m pretty much always ready to go. Strength work as well as balance and flexibility training don’t hurt either.

bjc: Excellent! Why the switch from SPOT to InReach? Just curious.

BTW: did/do you post YouTube videos of your A.T. experience?

A.T. Backpackers 2023 Videos

Spot broke and Inreach allows 2 way communication. No videos, I have to force myself to take pictures to keep my family happy! I always plan to document a trip and usually forget once the walking starts!

I’m now retired. I retired last year. I’m only 58 though. I am definitely older than I used to be.

I find that I’m much better able to tolerate cold because I’m always hot. I take old lady meds for that but they don’t always work and if it’s a long trip, I have to ration them because my health insurance sucks balls and won’t let me have more than a month at a time.

Since I retired I’ve hiked 900 miles of the CDT, then the AZT, then another 400 miles of the CDT. I loved the AZT. I kind of hate the CDT but I feel like somehow I have to finish it, or at least maybe I’ll skip Colorado and do New Mexico because I like desert way more than high elevation mountains.

I realize now I’m a fair weather hiker. I don’t like snow. I don’t like dare-devil stuff. I don’t like being beaten up by weather. I just want to walk peacefully in the forest and put in the miles. An occasional difficult pass is fine but not too many of them. A little type II suffering is okay, but too much or I’ll figure out how to go home. I’ve done some epic hitchhiking and feel pretty proud of my ability to get around by thumb.

I find that I don’t get as hungry as I used to and I don’t need to eat as much as I used to. 15 years ago I hiked the PCT and I could never eat enough. Now I barely ever feel hungry. Instead of hunger I just get tired. Recently I put in 30 miles in one day and didn’t drink any water. It wasn’t a hot day and it was a pretty gentle day as far as elevation change. It was raining and I was so tangled up with things around my waist and the inability to figure out how to ever put my poncho back on in the wind so I just didn’t drink water and I also tried never to pee or to even stop walking. I ate only 3 bars and 16oz of oatmeal and barely felt any hunger or thirst.

I have a Zoleo but am loathe to use it. I send the daily check-in but that’s it.

I feel in my older age that I don’t really need any comforts. I don’t understand these people who absolutely need super cushy blow-up pads, pillows, sit pads and other comforts. I just need to know my shelter won’t fail in the wind and rain and that mosquitoes can’t get me.

In my daily life instead of working for money I work in a garden doing hard labor twice a week for no money and on other days I walk around town. It’s great.

I’m slower going uphill, and I get tired and have to take a rest

Someone asked me if I was okay or needed some water

I started taking a diuretic for high blood pressure, which works, but I think it makes me more tired going uphill.  And I’ll lose 5 pounds that I quickly regain when I get back home.  I think I need to drink more.  Maybe I should quit taking diuretic when backpacking.  Got to talk to doc about that.

My right fore finger is more sensitive to cold – it starts to turn white, so I put it in my pocket, wear gloves more.

69 years old

Nick’s a libertarian? shocked I tell ya! Shocked! Waiting for a photo of the green comet! Fingers crossed.

I missed this comment. Here’s my image. Comet moves faster than the stars. Goal was to track on the stars with now star trails. Meant less of the comet tail captured.

Opps . . . Wrong comet

Medication and dehydration.

https://cuckfieldmedicalpractice.co.uk/health-advice/medication-and-dehydration-sick-day-rules/

Cinnamon

https://www.everydayhealth.com/hypertension-pictures/lose-the-salt-not-the-flavor.aspx#

I’ve been getting slower and colder for years and I hope this is not going to accelerate suddenly as I’m contemplating earlish retirement . I’ve always regretted that I could not spend more time backpacking and in search of lost time I plan to make up for it post retirement.

I’m just afraid I won’t be able to find enough hiking partners. I could go solo but it won’t sit well with my wife, even with inReach. Is there some secret society of geezers who backpack all the time that I could join?

67, but in better shape than I was 10 years ago. Luckily I can do 10 mile hikes from my front door, and try to hike almost every day with a full pack to stay in shape. Not retired but close, my territory is the entire West, so traveling through Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Montana, Oregon, California, Arizona and Washington every month or so is common.

I use my Inreach Mini almost all the time, nobody would find me if I went missing hiking from home, I don’t follow trails and nobody goes there (near Spokane).

Hiked part of the CT last year, it rained far too much for my liking. Did part of the AZT last year and a bit more this year, maybe I’ll do more in the future.

I don’t mind cold, but hate post holing, so not much winter hiking anymore.

Going UL helped a great deal to extend my hiking age, and I don’t plan to stop anytime soon.

Lack of sleep and other stressers like elevation really take a toll now. It takes far more effort to be ready for a particular adventure.

Thanks Terran Terran – I take ace inhibitor too but actually, I don’t think it does anything.  When I increase dose, my blood pressure doesn’t change, but adding diuretic has worked.  Need to talk to doc about stopping ace inhibitor as well as stop diuretic just when hiking.  My BP is just a little high, like 140/90.

At home I have trouble falling asleep, and waking up at 3AM and not being able to go back to sleep, although “sleep hygiene” has mostly managed that.  But when backpacking I sleep quite well.

The secret society is out on the trail. Lots of old guys out there. You just have to meet them.

this is a good thread, thank you. I have to suck it up and say that I fit in this thread really well: 63, retiring in seven years. in the middle of a DIY remodel. The only hike in two years is hopefully I get out for a couple overnights west of San Diego in the desert in November. My body fat is low but then so are my muscles and cardio is lacking. Ugh. next spring it’s back on the bicycle group rides and backpacking and canoeing.

as you said, moderation and enjoying the slower pace is what I have to do. I have no desire to press the limits of 10°F overnighters, and will have to limit daily mileage.

Every one of us here can count our blessings that we can still get out as much as we do.

61 year old here – retired a little over 2 years ago. The biggest issues I have noticed as I age are that soft tissue injuries take much longer to heal and I really don’t like climbing hills in the heat. I just got back from a short 4 day hike in the Adirondacks that coincided with a bit of a heat wave and after about 1 pm or so my pace slows to a crawl. Noticed the same thing in the Smokies the last couple of late April hikes. Its not a cardio thing – plenty of oxygen and not out of breath, legs are fine – no lactic acid burning, just an overall lack of energy.

As we age, we absorb less vitamin B from our diet.

https://www.healthline.com/health/food-nutrition/vitamin-b-complex#_noHeaderPrefixedContent

I’m 70, and slowing down significantly in past year or so.  Primarily due to both ankles (total joint replacement on both-right in 2012 and left in 2019).  May slow me down but won’t stop me!  I also prefer not to do as much cold weather hiking–still do day hikes in the winter at elevation (live in Colorado), but no more overnight backpacking/climbing for me.  Prefer backpacking to peak bagging (which I did a lot of up until several years ago).  I call myself a “recovering” peak bagger.  I have just accepted that I’m not as fast as I used to be, but still love getting out there–will do it as long as I’m able!

I’m 63, and like so many others in this thread, my wife does not want me to go out alone anymore. I’m generally hiking off-trail and that does entail extra risk.

There is a lot of resistance to communication devices like the InReach that I don’t understand. Way upthread Nick said “Of course, I told her that if I have a heart attack the device probably won’t do any good, I’ll be dead by the time someone gets to me.” This is simply untrue. I know three people who had heart attacks in the backcountry and only one of the three died on the spot. One wasn’t too far from the trailhead and with help managed to walk out. He can’t really hike anymore. The third was far back in and he had to wait while his partner hiked out to get help. He was eventually rescued by helicopter but it would have made a huge difference if he had a communication device.

What most people seem to forget about communication devices is that they are not only useful when there is an emergency in the field, they are also useful when there is an emergency at home. Once my wife had a medical emergency while I was backpacking. Another time I had a friend who was overdue from a day trip and they didn’t know where he was parked (I knew. He was fine). He has an InReach now.

I used my InReach twice this summer for car issues. I got back to the trailhead and my car wouldn’t start. I was able to send messages back home and have somebody arrange for a tow (which came to over $800). The other time was for someone else who had a flat 30 miles in on logging roads and no way to change their tire because, he discovered, they forgot to give him the key he needed when he got new wheels. He texted a friend who was able to get what he needed.

I was 18 miles from the car at the very end of August this year when I fell in a nasty, burned out area and managed to break my toe. I hiked out the 18 miles on it, but it ended my hiking season and brought home the fact that it is very easy and quick to have something happen and being able to communicate can be a huge safety advantage.

“Also, not as willing (or able) to do the really tough hikes, such as 10,000 foot elevation gains in a single day.”

Ummm…yes, that meets my definition of a tough elevation day, for sure. Where the heck were you hiking when you did this?

Roger, can I borrow your wife, since I still don’t have a Spot device?