No more backpacking! What next?

[paula53]

Have you thought about canoe camping and fishing? A canoe can be carried on a canoe cart, with your light weight camping gear. It could open up new areas to explore while getting your dose of physical fitness in. Most well built canoes for solo use can weigh 40 pounds or less.

[dave54]

After a long and happy life as an active outdoor couple and healthy eating and exercise, the 90 year old man and wife met St. Peter at the ivory gates. St. Peter said “Let me show you around. Here is our base camp. The weather is ideal every day. You will note it is at the edge of a flower filled meadow, and songbirds and wildlife entertain you all day long. Beautiful sunsets every night and then the skies are filled with stars. Every two weeks the views change and become another one of the great National Parks of the world. There are no mosquitoes. We sent them below to the other place.” “Wow” the man said. “How do we get reservations, and how long can we stay?” “Stay as long as you want, there is always a campsite available. This is heaven.”
St Peter continued. “Here is our network of hiking trails. The trails are always in perfect shape, and lead to the most wonderful backcountry areas. The terrain changes monthly to the great Wilderness Areas of the world. You will never tire. You will always have the full vigor and stamina of your youth.”
The man asked “How do we get permits?” St. Peter replied “This is heaven, you never need permits. There are no trail quotas or limits.” Peter continued “Here is one of our mountain streams. Fly fish all day long. The fish will always be easy to catch, and there are no limits or seasons. This is heaven.”
Then Peter showed them the local bar and grill. “Here is where you can eat if you tire of camp food. All the burgers, pizza, wings, beer, and spirits you want. Eat all the fried greasy food without any concern for your health or digestion. This is heaven.” His lips starting to quiver, the man asked “No low fat or gluten free items on the menu?” “No, not needed. You stay healthy no matter what you eat or don’t exercise. Now over here is our canoe trail, and the mountain bike trail…” Suddenly the man took off his hat, screaming. Stomping on his hat he kept yelling “No! No! It is not fair! This is all your fault!” He turned to his wife and yelled “If it wasn’t for your damn yoga and quinoa bran muffins, I could have been here twenty years ago!”

[balzaccom]

nice! Thanks for the chuckle

[wsp_scott]

I sort of joke that my end of life plan is a large bottle of bourbon -> hypothermia -> die peacefully -> hopefully bear food -> bear ****

I know I'm around good people when a bunch of others are thinking along the same lines

[Wandering Daisy]

For most of us there is a gap between being unable to backpack and dying. Sometimes disability intervenes and backpacking is then done. For many of us, there is a choice. I think most people quit backpacking more due to desire than ability. Do you want to quit at the top of your game? Or are you willing to accept toddling into a base camp at under 1 mph? Is the wilderness experience worth the ever increasing effort? And there is the safety issue too. My husband used to ride motorcycles and after a good many years without an accident, he chose to hang it up when he realized he was riding on borrowed time. If you saw yourself as a "high end backpacker", can you live with being less?

I have had to adjust over the years from alpine technical climbing to gnarly off-trail backpacking now to staying more on trails nowadays. I can no longer hike from dawn to dusk, so I got into fishing to fill the late day hours. My husband hung it up (there went my backpacking/climbing partner) so I started going solo as many of my age-group has quit backpacking. I probably will just toddle on, slower every year, shorter trips every year, more trails until some physical or mental disability actually stops me. Then it may come to car camping and day hiking. There always seems to be something that I can do and still enjoy the wilderness. It is hard to second guess what my thoughts will be about this until the time comes. In the mean time, I just think day by day.

Just would like to point out to the younger folks, that backpacking when retired is wonderful. No more driving all night to get back to a job, the ability to go out on a whim any time.

[bobby49]

I found one way to deal with this. Each year after I passed a certain age, I've been reducing my total weight carried by one pound. Fortunately, with modern ultralightweight gear, this is possible. Since food weight can be significant, I will eventually end up reducing the number of days spent out in the woods.

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

[Wandering Daisy]

Bobby- if the "49" in Bobby49 means what I think it does, you and I are the same age! Fortunately we both seem to be doing pretty well, considering.
I think it will be a few years yet before either of us has to decide what to do next.

[bobby49]

Bobby- if the "49" in Bobby49 means what I think it does, you and I are the same age! Fortunately we both seem to be doing pretty well, considering.
I think it will be a few years yet before either of us has to decide what to do next.

Didn't we go to different schools together?

[wildhiker]

I agree with WD's thoughts. I'll always find a way to enjoy the wilderness as long as I am not bed bound or totally demented. At nearly 68, I can't pound out the miles or elevation gains of my youth, but I can still do multi-night backpack trips at a slower pace and I enjoy them just as much. When I can't handle carrying the pack anymore, I'll just do day-hikes (already do a lot of those, too). When I can't hike, I'll stroll, and if I can't do that, I'll at least drive someplace where I can admire the mountains. My model is Carl Sharsmith, who served as a summer ranger-naturalist for over 60 years in Yosemite - the longest tenured Park Service employee ever. At age 91, he was still leading short wildflower walks in Tuolumne Meadows. When the season ended, he went home and died within a month.
-Phil

[balzaccom]

Me too. I'll be 68 in less than a month, and we've already done about 70 miles of backpacking this year, with more on the horizon. It's just too much fun, too beautiful, too rewarding to give up.