How Old is Too Old?

[whynotwalk]

Okay - I've just turned 60. My knees are not all that they used to be, I don't power up the hills quite as fast, and photography and botany seem to take up a little more of my attention than they used to while out bush. On the other hand I was mentored by people who walked well into their 80s, and I'm hoping I might do the same. When it comes to bushwalking, is there such a thing as too old?

I was thinking about this while in the Alps - the place I decided to run away to for my 60th - and I came across the inspiring example of Ulrich Inderbinen, a Zermatt guide who climbed none other than the Matterhorn right into his 90s I've written more about it on my blog here http://www.naturescribe.com/2013/09/whats-age-got-to-do-with-it.html

So ... what's your take on how old is too old? What stories have you got about oldies who can put youth to shame? Or am I just dreaming?

cheers

Peter

[wayno]

well an 80 year old climbed everst this year and he's not finished yet... the benchmark is still being raised. i've met a 78 year old on the routeburn,, up talking late into the night in the huts....

http://news.yahoo.com/80-old-everest-cl ... 49701.html

[GPSGuided]

We are all individuals!

[LandSailor]

If your knees are starting to go another option is taking up kayaking. Open water requires a more serious commitment in terms of skills, fitness and safety but paddling along our inland waterways can be very pleasant. You can carry alot of weight for overnight trips and get to some nice locations which would otherwise be pretty inaccessible (even on foot).

[whynotwalk]

We are all individuals!

... repeat after me ...

[Genesis]

As long as you can!

[geoskid]

How old is too old?
When the amount of medication I have to take with me weighs more than the Zimmer Frame I have to take with me.
Until then, no excuses.

[Miyata610]

We are all individuals!

I'm not.

[Hallu]

Usually when you grow old, endurance is not the problem. As long as you keep your heart rate to a decent level, it's fine. Your heart is a muscle, and needs to be taken care of. But intense effort can be tricky and painful. You need to take care of your joints, always walk with 2 poles, light packs, etc... A lot of it is mental too : enjoying the bush will give you extra strength. I believe all those old timers going like crazy are really passionate about bush walking, and that passion simply keeps them young. As long as you have that, you can do whatever you want.

[neilmny]

Well said Hallu.

[GPSGuided]

Just take shorter walks and hopefully saved a big enough 'kitty of life' to employ a few porters for your packs.

[Graham51]

When I was in my 30s there was an older walker in the HWC who was in his 70s. He used to set off up the mountains while we were getting ready with comments like, "I'll get a bit of a head start because you lot will probably catch up to me." Well we never did - he'd be sitting on top waiting for us and I'm sure he knew that would be the case.
I reckon keep walking as long as you can and enjoy it. I've had to wait for plenty younger than me in the past so hopefully some younger ones won't mind waiting for me now. If they do, that's okay. There is always someone to walk with about the same level.

[Nuts]

Ahhh, the old-

"I'll get a bit of a head start because you lot will probably catch up to me."

Iv'e met a few of them.

Just take shorter walks and hopefully saved a big enough 'kitty of life' to employ a few porters for your packs.

Iv'e worked with guides/porters in their 60's, heavy packs, long hours (on top of the days walk), once with a guide in his 70's with titanium hips.

Lots of overuse injuries seem to start to come into play so I guess physically things can fall apart a bit, especially if you've had a hard physical working life/ repetive sporting injuries and so on. Mentally though i think there's something that comes with knowing your own mind, a trick here and there- knowing other people will fall for the old 'head start' ploy

[Overlandman]

Back in the 90's I can remember a Dr from Hobart that walked the Overland Track, he was in his eighties, I think he did it yearly.
There is a certain lady from Ulverstone who has walked the track several times,& last year completed the walk at the age of 82, Both were carrying their own pack

[puredingo]

But what about when your brain goes crazy? Pshyical fitness is one thing, being mentally sound is another.

The way my memory is at the moment I'm in danger of setting my pack down for lunch, then finishing the days walk and getting ready to set my tent up realizing it's 15 km's back down the track back at the lunch site!

[Moondog55]

Never too old.
As I get slower I get tougher, getting old isn't for the weak or fainthearted.
Just bury me where I fall.

[GPSGuided]

Just bury me where I fall.

That may infringe NP regulations.

[neilmny]

Just bury me where I fall.

That may infringe NP regulations.

I don't reckon that will trouble the fallen

[Graham51]

I was talking at work today and someone said a man over 100 years old finished the London Marathon this year. (Not sure which year he started.) If that's true, it's a pretty impressive feat however long it took him.

[Graham51]

Here is one link to an article about it. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-17784505

[Snowzone]

The advice I received from a group of ladies in their 80's still carrying full packs on extended walks was 'if you don't use it, you lose it!' and I think that was probably a very good piece of advice. As long as it is something you are doing regularly you should be able to keep doing it later in life. With the exception of injury of course.

[clarence]

For those in doubt please look at the NSW trip report "Anzac Pass" and the accompanying videos/photos. viewtopic.php?f=47&t=11057

My old mate John was 79 when he did this, up the pass like a monkey. He's not as fast as he once was, but still gets out into the hard core stuff, with the enthusiasm of a child.

Clarence

[Wollemi]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diana_Nyad

In 2013 at age 64 she became the first person to swim from Cuba to Florida.

~~~~

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ranulph_Fiennes

In May 2009, at the age of 65, he climbed to the summit of Mount Everest.

Impatient at the pain the dying fingertips caused, Fiennes cut them off himself with a fretsaw (at home)...

Despite suffering from a heart attack and undergoing a double heart bypass operation just four months before, Fiennes... in 2003... complete[d] seven marathons in seven days on seven continents.

[GPSGuided]

In May 2009, at the age of 65, he climbed to the summit of Mount Everest.
Impatient at the pain the dying fingertips caused, Fiennes cut them off himself with a fretsaw (at home)...
Despite suffering from a heart attack and undergoing a double heart bypass operation just four months before, Fiennes... in 2003... complete[d] seven marathons in seven days on seven continents.

With that kind of psychology, it would be a nightmare to look after should he ever need to enter a nursing home. Maybe he has the insight and know he'll need to keep fit to stay away from those retirement homes.

[Swifty]

In May 2009, at the age of 65, he climbed to the summit of Mount Everest.
Impatient at the pain the dying fingertips caused, Fiennes cut them off himself with a fretsaw (at home)...
Despite suffering from a heart attack and undergoing a double heart bypass operation just four months before, Fiennes... in 2003... complete[d] seven marathons in seven days on seven continents.

With that kind of psychology, it would be a nightmare to look after should he ever need to enter a nursing home. Maybe he has the insight and know he'll need to keep fit to stay away from those retirement homes.

well, he is an amazing man...would you expect less from Voldemort's older brother?