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Sailor (The other one)
02-06-2018, 10:20
We need to know about comfortable average daily mileage for old folks like us - 60 years old + - for long distance hikes on the AT, from long section hikes to thru hikes. We are not interested in hiking big miles for big miles sake or to make a deadline. We're more like easy does it folks and if we don't complete a thru in a year, we don't care.
Thanks.

ScottTrip
02-06-2018, 10:39
At 60 I can do 15 MPD pretty easy. On my AT hike at 58 did an average of 16 MPD with several 20+ mile days. As you know it is the recovery from a big day that takes time.

jefals
02-06-2018, 10:55
So many factors play into this besides just age. How you've been taking care of yourself - or not - up to now makes a big difference. If you're 60 and can easily hike 15 mpd, you might be doing something that over 50% of 30 year olds can't do...

Rain Man
02-06-2018, 11:06
In my 50s I scheduled and hiked 15 mpd on average (mostly in the South).

In my 60s I became more leisurely at about 12 mpd average (mostly in North).

Depends VERY much on terrain and season (daylight hours). In NH & ME, I averaged 6 mpd on some trips and was happy to make that.

Slo-go'en
02-06-2018, 11:22
So many factors. Weather, terrain, how much is in your pack, your physical condition and mood. I've seen old people struggle to do 5 miles in a day and others who can pound out consistent 20's. In my 60's, I typically do 10 to 15, with the occasional 20 if I have to.

If your not overweight, in reasonably good shape, not on any serious medication, arthritis hasn't kicked in, your knees are okay, and have a reasonably light pack, 10 to 15 miles a day isn't unreasonable.

If you haven't done any long distance hiking before and don't have a base line to judge from, you just have to go out and see what you can do.

peakbagger
02-06-2018, 12:03
Over the years I found older hikers tended to go slowly but hike longer. They got going earlier in the morning and finished later in the day. Somewhere in mid morning the folks they camped with will catch up and pass them. That evening while the younger folks have cooked supper the older folks will stroll in. Definitely hare and tortoise.

A big qualifier is where you plan to hike, the south and most of the trail south of the rocks in PA are mostly older ridgeline roads on soil. Once you get in the rocks in PA, it still may be somewhat flat and level but the rocks do slow things down. NJ and NY have a mix of rocks and older roads. Once you get into the whites, the gymnastics begin and they remain so on an off to Katahdin. Upper body strength factors in and boulder hopping can be hard on the joints..

Captain Panda
02-06-2018, 12:07
We need to know about comfortable average daily mileage for old folks like us - 60 years old + - for long distance hikes on the AT, from long section hikes to thru hikes. We are not interested in hiking big miles for big miles sake or to make a deadline. We're more like easy does it folks and if we don't complete a thru in a year, we don't care.
Thanks.

Yes, conditioning, health, weather, terrain, pack weight, etc that has been mentioned, certainly will affect mileage goals. Obviously start with very modest days, and let your mind and body dictate how far you can go. As you get stronger, you will just naturally go farther. However, there is a mental aspect also. On my injury (fall) shortened thru hike attempt in 2016 (age 66); after a few weeks on the trail, I forced myself to get out of camp as early as possible, and terrain dependent, pushed to get 10 miles in by lunch. Then after a hard stop, the remainder of the day was a cruise, and I found that my mileage was increasing without beating myself up. I guess that it's just my nature to put the longest part of the day in my rearview mirror before taking a big rest. Most importantly, hike your own hike, and don't be influenced by the big mileage hikers that you meet; especially some of the 60+ horses that are out there.

rocketsocks
02-06-2018, 12:08
10 miles a day allows you to sleep in, and stay up late.

rocketsocks
02-06-2018, 12:12
April through September.

rocketsocks
02-06-2018, 12:13
Oops, March though September.

MuddyWaters
02-06-2018, 12:15
I hiked with a 74 yr old thruhiker doing 15 mpd some years ago.

You know that endurance doesn't have to being to decrease significantly untl after 65? This is why many 60-70 yr olds run ultras . A 64 yr old can have same endurance as a 19 yr old. Look it up.

If you want to blame your physical condition, look in mirror. You can't blame your age.....yet .

Yes 95% of people are out of shape lazy slobs, age doesn't change this. That's not how everyone has to be.

FreeGoldRush
02-06-2018, 12:21
People vary widely on the miles they can/want to do. If you have not done much hiking you may be surprised at how your daily mileage will increase with conditioning. Sitting at home for only two weeks will cause you to temporarily lose much of your conditioning, so hike regularly. Do your training on mountains; not flat ground. Wear shoes with proper arch support.

ldsailor
02-06-2018, 12:42
I can do 13 to 15 miles (depending on terrain) on a fairly regular basis. If I need to, 17 or 18 miles is doable. I've done over 20 miles numerous times in two LASH's totaling 1,280 miles, but boy, they were tough miles at the end. I rarely can get to 2 MPH, but when doing 20 miles or over, I do it.

lonehiker
02-06-2018, 12:53
We need to know about comfortable average daily mileage for old folks like us - 60 years old + - for long distance hikes on the AT, from long section hikes to thru hikes. We are not interested in hiking big miles for big miles sake or to make a deadline. We're more like easy does it folks and if we don't complete a thru in a year, we don't care.
Thanks.

This question is impossible for anyone to answer except for yourself and your hiking partner. What mileages have you been able to do on "normal" backpacking trips? That may be a good baseline. As you get more fit, during a hike, your mileage will probably increase. If you have never backpacked before then you need to do some 2-3 night trips to ascertain your baseline.

jefals
02-06-2018, 13:05
I hiked with a 74 yr old thruhiker doing 15 mpd some years ago.

You know that endurance doesn't have to being to decrease significantly untl after 65? This is why many 60-70 yr olds run ultras . A 64 yr old can have same endurance as a 19 yr old. Look it up.

If you want to blame your physical condition, look in mirror. You can't blame your age.....yet .

Yes 95% of people are out of shape lazy slobs, age doesn't change this. That's not how everyone has to be.
Reminds me of an interview Johnny Carson had with Arnold Schwarzenegger (and that right there might give you a bit of a clue to how much of a geezer I am)!
Anyway, Carson tells Arnold that a lot of folks don't want to work out because they think they're going to bulk up and then when they stop all that bulk will turn to flab. Arnold says, "Well, my advice is don't stop. You don’t stop eating, breathing or drinking water - it's just another part of living".
I guess I still remember that cause it sounded like dang good advice.

GoldenBear
02-06-2018, 13:29
When I started, and I didn't really know what I was doing, I felt lucky to do ten miles in a day. Now I've learned a few tricks (like getting on The Trail before dawn!), and I can easily do fifteen miles in a day.

As others have noted, it has very little to do with age. Terrain, weather, conditioning, gear, and preparation are all MUCH more important.

Grampie
02-06-2018, 14:14
I was 66 years when I thru-hiked. My daily average was 11.2 MPD.

Stepinwolfe
02-06-2018, 14:21
Suggest you focus on time per day, i.e., 9 hours per day. Forget about mileage.

Deadeye
02-06-2018, 14:28
The only thing I've found with age (I'm 62) is that it's easier to get hurt and it takes a lot longer to heal, and that trend is accelerating. I recommend not stringing several long days together until you've proven to yourself that you can do it without injury, i.e. hike on long day before a rest day, hike 2 long days before a zero, etc., until you know you can do 2-5 without paying for it.

Tipi Walter
02-06-2018, 14:34
We are not interested in hiking big miles for big miles sake or to make a deadline. We're more like easy does it folks and if we don't complete a thru in a year, we don't care.
Thanks.

Well, you just answered your own question. Many many backpackers are obsessed with daily mileage, some aren't. Some endurance athlete-types like Skurka overly concentrate on Miles Gained Per Day but 99% of us are not endurance athletes.

As others have said, your question cannot really be answered. Here's a similar thread you may find interesting---

https://backpackinglight.com/forums/topic/a-strategy-for-older-people-for-thru-hiking/#comments

In December I went out with some friends and it took us four hours to backpack 3 miles thru a blizzard. We set up camp after 3 miles. "Verboten!!!" many would say but who's in charge of your hike, you or them??

The high mileage types like to say "you're a camper not a hiker" if you're only pulling low daily miles. There's an elitist tone with such people. But you already made your point clear: You're "not interested in hiking big miles" and "we don't care if we complete a thru in a year." Amen.

illabelle
02-06-2018, 15:13
We need to know about comfortable average daily mileage for old folks like us - 60 years old + - for long distance hikes on the AT, from long section hikes to thru hikes. We are not interested in hiking big miles for big miles sake or to make a deadline. We're more like easy does it folks and if we don't complete a thru in a year, we don't care.
Thanks.

Since you've been a WB member since 2007, I'm guessing you probably have a few dozen miles of experience at least. So I figure you probably know all you need to know about your own capabilities. Maybe just looking for confirmation from others, or unsure if you've got what it takes to tackle a thru or long section. Chances are, you do. Longest section we've done is 100+ miles (MA,CT,NY) and several in the 70-85 mile range. We regularly manage 10-15 mpd, but distance is often limited by factors other than the energy required to hike that far. Factors like sore feet or a sore back stop us as often as being tired.

From the "we" in your post, I'm guessing you're a husband/wife couple. As with any pair of hiking partners, if you hike together (as opposed to simply meeting up at the end of the day), there are compromises that have to be made. My husband is long-legged. At his normal relaxed pace, he quickly outdistances me - so I walk in front and set the pace. If I have the energy and drive, I like to keep moving whereas he's inclined to stop more often for water, to sit on a log, or take in a view - so I stop with him. When one of us runs out of steam, the other waits patiently. Give and take. From your post, it does sound like your hiking style is pretty laid back. Wish I was retired!

tiptoe
02-06-2018, 16:09
As others have said/implied, you need to take some shakedown hikes to get a rough idea of how fast you can go, or choose to go. I have a pretty good idea of my pace, after more than 10 years of section hiking. So when I calculate how much food I need for a given distance, it's a matter of simple division, plus one more day's meals, just in case. I'm now 73, but in my 60s, when I hiked the southern trail, I generally averaged 9-12 miles/day. The last two years, in northern NH/Maine, it was more like 5-7 miles per day most of the way and about 10 miles per day as I approached Katahdin. Like you, I'm not speedy and never have been, even in my youth. I'm more interested in taking in the views, watching wildlife, and meeting people when I hike.

Slo-go'en
02-06-2018, 17:00
If you need to get up before dawn to start hiking, please don't stay in shelters. Or at least figure out how to get going without waking everyone else up. Which means moving away from the shelter to make your breakfast and load your pack.

Since I camp almost exclusively at shelter sites (but only occasionally in the shelter) my mileage is determined by how far apart these are. If possible, I go every other shelter, stopping at the middle one for lunch or afternoon snack and refilling water if needed.

Wyoming
02-06-2018, 18:35
I'm 63.

When I am on a long distance hike I average from 20-25 mpd and still can (if I have a reason to) go as high as 35 mpd.
I am pretty much an ultra light hiker so that helps a bit - but not as much as the avid UL folks like to claim.
I am never out of shape and hike every day even when I am not 'in training' for an upcoming hike. 30 miles in a week is a low week. When in training I ramp up to somewhere near 100 miles per week with a pack in the mountains. I think this constant hiking pays huge dividends as I never struggle starting a long hike and I almost never (knock on wood) get injured.

What I think works best for any hiker (old or not) is not to rush down the trail at high speed, then have to take a long mid-day break or lots of little breaks. What I do (and this is easy for us old folks who just cannot sleep late) is to get up early and get going - I am almost always hiking by 0600. I just walk a easy steady pace which I know I can hold all the way to 1200. I do not stop during this time except for bio breaks or if I have to redistribute water. I carry lots of food in my hip belt pockets and two water bottles attached to my shoulder straps. By 1200 on a slow day I have 12 miles in and on a normal day 15 and a really good day 18. I only take about 20-30 mins for lunch and then load up similar to the morning and mosey along. Unless it is real hot then I take a big mid-day break and go to sleep. I hike fewer miles in the afternoon in general and sometimes stop for a couple 5 min breaks. If I want to do big miles I stop instead about 4pm and eat extra and then hike on till maybe 7pm. This will put me above 25mpd normally.

My normal pace is about 2 1/2 mph in rugged terrain and will drift up to 3 mph on easy stuff. This is without pushing it. I try not to get out of breath very often and never really out of breath as that wears you out much quicker over the course of a whole day. I can go faster but only do that if there is a real need.

Big miles come from extra time not speed. And it is really important to eat constantly (200 cal per hour or so). Do not let your body start stripping its energy reserves due to not eating enough. Eat LOTS of high FAT food during the day as this is the best fuel by far. Save your proteins for your last meal before hitting the sack.

The above is an easy way to hike and it does not really wear you out so you can do it every day.

jjozgrunt
02-06-2018, 18:58
Yes I'm similar to the above post. When I wake up after typically about 8 hours sleep, I get up and walk. Last year I saw every sunrise while I was on the AT, except for coming out of towns, for the 22 days I was walking till injured. I imagine I will be the same this year. First week average was 12, second week 14.1, and in the last week it was over 15 with the last four days 20+. I hike long days not quickly but at a steady pace with breaks when I want or at somewhere that needs a photo. I have been known to take a combat nap at lunch time.

rocketsocks
02-06-2018, 19:10
If you need to get up before dawn to start hiking, please don't stay in shelters. Or at least figure out how to get going without waking everyone else up. Which means moving away from the shelter to make your breakfast and load your pack.

Since I camp almost exclusively at shelter sites (but only occasionally in the shelter) my mileage is determined by how far apart these are. If possible, I go every other shelter, stopping at the middle one for lunch or afternoon snack and refilling water if needed.See now I’m of a different opinion, if ya stay at shelters you get what you get including noise from early departures, stay in tent away from others if peace and quiet is necessity.

rocketsocks
02-06-2018, 19:10
If you need to get up before dawn to start hiking, please don't stay in shelters. Or at least figure out how to get going without waking everyone else up. Which means moving away from the shelter to make your breakfast and load your pack.

Since I camp almost exclusively at shelter sites (but only occasionally in the shelter) my mileage is determined by how far apart these are. If possible, I go every other shelter, stopping at the middle one for lunch or afternoon snack and refilling water if needed.See now I’m of a different opinion, if ya stay at shelters you get what you get including noise from early departures, stay in tent away from others if peace and quiet is necessity.

fiddlehead
02-06-2018, 20:51
Remember also: You are only as fast as the slowest hiker in your group.
I just finished a tough trail in Europe.
Did some big miles but was much slower at 67 on the uphills as I was at 47.
Downhills and level were the same.
Our longest day was around 28 miles.

LittleTim
02-07-2018, 07:20
I'd even add to consider the past 5 years, and especially the past one year regarding your physical activity capacity. If you're retiring from a cushy air conditioned, one level office job then you'll be in for a reality check trying to get 5 miles in a day (especially if you haven't already 'dialed-in' your pack/gear with a few preliminary hikes). If you're constantly climbing steps with additional weight carried, you'll be ahead of the curve.

I've encountered just about every level of conditioning from people 60+ out there, and it also tends to do with mindset. You'll find your happy place, whether it is 3 miles or 30, then it'll change with the weather, terrain, or how you treated yourself the day before. Rinse, repeat.

Leo L.
02-07-2018, 07:31
I'm always wondering why in the US mileage seems to be the main measure of a hike?
We here in EU are mostly speaking about hours.
I typically hike about 10hrs (may varie from 8-12) a day, and try to estimate the point on the route I might reach within this timespan, due to elevation gain, trail condition and other circumstances.

cmoulder
02-07-2018, 08:02
I'm 63.

When I am on a long distance hike I average from 20-25 mpd and still can (if I have a reason to) go as high as 35 mpd.
I am pretty much an ultra light hiker so that helps a bit - but not as much as the avid UL folks like to claim.
I am never out of shape and hike every day even when I am not 'in training' for an upcoming hike. 30 miles in a week is a low week. When in training I ramp up to somewhere near 100 miles per week with a pack in the mountains. I think this constant hiking pays huge dividends as I never struggle starting a long hike and I almost never (knock on wood) get injured.

What I think works best for any hiker (old or not) is not to rush down the trail at high speed, then have to take a long mid-day break or lots of little breaks. What I do (and this is easy for us old folks who just cannot sleep late) is to get up early and get going - I am almost always hiking by 0600. I just walk a easy steady pace which I know I can hold all the way to 1200. I do not stop during this time except for bio breaks or if I have to redistribute water. I carry lots of food in my hip belt pockets and two water bottles attached to my shoulder straps. By 1200 on a slow day I have 12 miles in and on a normal day 15 and a really good day 18. I only take about 20-30 mins for lunch and then load up similar to the morning and mosey along. Unless it is real hot then I take a big mid-day break and go to sleep. I hike fewer miles in the afternoon in general and sometimes stop for a couple 5 min breaks. If I want to do big miles I stop instead about 4pm and eat extra and then hike on till maybe 7pm. This will put me above 25mpd normally.

My normal pace is about 2 1/2 mph in rugged terrain and will drift up to 3 mph on easy stuff. This is without pushing it. I try not to get out of breath very often and never really out of breath as that wears you out much quicker over the course of a whole day. I can go faster but only do that if there is a real need.

Big miles come from extra time not speed. And it is really important to eat constantly (200 cal per hour or so). Do not let your body start stripping its energy reserves due to not eating enough. Eat LOTS of high FAT food during the day as this is the best fuel by far. Save your proteins for your last meal before hitting the sack.

The above is an easy way to hike and it does not really wear you out so you can do it every day.

This is closest to what I do. As a general guideline I like to keep "perceived effort" at about 60-65% of my personal maximum, which is something I can maintain for the duration.

Getting up early and packing efficiently while water is heating for breakfast/coffee, I can easily get moving in 1/2 hr. Especially in the summer I appreciate those cooler morning hours, the only downside being that the first person on the trail catches all the spider webs strung across the trail overnight.

garlic08
02-07-2018, 09:18
I'll throw in that there appears to be a big difference between 60 and 69. "In your sixties" is quite a range, and I know I'm right at the cusp of it. At a relatively young 60 (just hiked 57 fun miles in two days last month), I have a pretty good feeling things will be different in nine years looking at 70. My buddy in his early seventies has been slowing down a bit the last few years.

And I wonder at what point I'll stop being able to get stronger at a given activity. Most older athletes echo Arnold--never stop!

There's no way to give concrete advice on the OP's question, way too many variables. There are outliers like my friend mentioned above, who hiked the AT in 106 days at age 64. He certainly was in no hurry, it was just his pace.

SoaknWet
02-07-2018, 09:27
For this Old Geezer waking up/ standing up each morning is a plus, mileage walked is just the cherry on top!

jefals
02-07-2018, 10:19
I'm always wondering why in the US mileage seems to be the main measure of a hike?

Because we've got these long, 2,000 mile trails and lots of folks like to think about starting and finishing them in one year. Lots of folks on this site are thinking about that. And, due to winter weather especially in the north, there's a need to shorten that year to 5 or 6 months. So, folks do the math, try to account for zero days and figure out how many miles per day they need to be able to do.
I think that's the reason why a lot of folks here think about mpd. Others just want to use mpd as a measure of fitness. Could be other reasons, I guess...

Seatbelt
02-07-2018, 10:33
I've noticed that I don't have the hiking endurance I had while in my 50's and so I quit putting big expectations on myself. When I feel tired, I rest, when hungry I eat. when done for the day I set up camp. The time of day that I do each is of less importance. This makes it hard to hike with a companion however.

TexasBob
02-07-2018, 10:37
I'll throw in that there appears to be a big difference between 60 and 69. ................

That's the reason why retirement age is 65 :) Hiking the AT was easier when I was in my fifties. Everybody is different but I think you need better pre-hike conditioning as you get older, at least I do.

peakbagger
02-07-2018, 10:41
Shelters and campsite locations are another reason for having to keep track of miles. In many areas in PA, NJ, NY and CT, the shelters and campsites are clustered on state or federal land interconnected by long stretches of trail where there are no legal shelters or campsites. The choices sometimes can be a 4 or a 6 mile day versus a 20 mile day to clear the gap. Some days you just need to crank out the miles, other days you can be more flexible.

I expect most couples arent willing to do it, but a key swap hike makes a lot of sense. Use one car, drop off one person at trail junction and they head south, the driver then drives south to another trail junction and hike north. They meet for lunch and then the one that ends up at the car drives back and picks up the other hiker. This means no need to carry a big pack. Many shelters and campsites in the middle atlantic and the south are quite accessible from forest service roads and if you find a good hostel you can base out of it for a few days. It also helps to get to know the area, as getting on the road usually gets you out of the green tunnel. Cell coverage is pretty good down south but a FMRS radio will normally cover the distance done in day hike. The nice part of hiking separately is both parties hike at their own pace.

handlebar
02-07-2018, 11:21
For a little perspective, I started long distance backpacking with the AT in 2006 at age 61 and have continued until now. I found, and still believe, the AT is one of the most difficult trails due to elevation gain/loss and the grade of those climbs and descents. Daily miles are dependent largely on terrain covered and the shape you are in. I often start out rather slowly, then ramp up my miles per day. Listed below in the following format are /Trail/Miles Hiked/My Age at the time/Avg Miles per Hiking Day:
AT 2175 61 13-1/4
PCT 2660 63 19-1/2
CDT 1230 65 16-1/2 (NM & CO to Steamboat Springs)
ALT 300 66 13 (Allegheny Trail in WV)
CDT 1030 66 18 (WY & MT to Helena)
MST 325 67 12-1/2 (Mid-State Trail in PA)
CT 590 68 16-1/2 (CT + 100 mi on CDT)
TT-AT 440 68 14 (Loop of Tuscarora and AT)
AZT 600 69 15-1/2 (UT to Mt. Lemon)
LT 275 69 15-1/4
ST 310 69 13-1/2 (Sheltowee Trace)
AZT 185 70 14-1/4 (Mex to Mt. Lemon)
FT 1140 70 20
NCT 815 71 15-1/2 (NY & part of PA)
GET 320 72 12-3/4 (ABQ to Black Range)

Slo-go'en
02-07-2018, 12:03
See now I’m of a different opinion, if ya stay at shelters you get what you get including noise from early departures, stay in tent away from others if peace and quiet is necessity.

Sure you have to expect some noise, but some people are exceptionally noisy and they keep it up for hours in or directly in front of the shelter. That behavior is exceptionally rude when it starts before dawn.

Coffee
02-07-2018, 12:21
Impossible to answer, but I can say that I've been surprised by the number of older hikers doing more miles than I typically do, and I normally hike at least 20 mpd. And at age 44, I'm in way better shape than I was at age 24. I don't think there's any reason for "older" hikers in their 60s to hike less miles than younger hikers (if they are in shape), unless they simply enjoy doing fewer miles. I suspect that many retirees do lower miles not because of physical issues so much as having much more time than younger people to complete thru hikes.

JJ505
02-07-2018, 13:18
I'll throw in that there appears to be a big difference between 60 and 69. "In your sixties" is quite a range, and I know I'm right at the cusp of it. At a relatively young 60 (just hiked 57 fun miles in two days last month), I have a pretty good feeling things will be different in nine years looking at 70. My buddy in his early seventies has been slowing down a bit the last few years.
.

Yeah I definitely agree with this. I'm 69, I very much feel a difference from 60. It's not that I'm not as fit, but I think speed of repair is just not the same. I'm not a thru-hiker, but I'm sure it would be a factor, if I were.

Wyoming
02-07-2018, 14:32
I'll throw in that there appears to be a big difference between 60 and 69. "In your sixties" is quite a range, and I know I'm right at the cusp of it. At a relatively young 60 (just hiked 57 fun miles in two days last month), I have a pretty good feeling things will be different in nine years looking at 70. My buddy in his early seventies has been slowing down a bit the last few years.

And I wonder at what point I'll stop being able to get stronger at a given activity. Most older athletes echo Arnold--never stop!

There's no way to give concrete advice on the OP's question, way too many variables. There are outliers like my friend mentioned above, who hiked the AT in 106 days at age 64. He certainly was in no hurry, it was just his pace.

Yes there is a difference between 60 and 70 just as there is between 50 and 60. But a lot of those differences work differently than many assume.

The 'average' human male for instance starts to lose approximately 2% of their muscle mass each year starting at the age of 50. This means that the average man has 81.7% of his age 50 muscle mass left at 60 and 66.8% at age 70.

Now the thing to note here is that this natural biological decline is not something which can be avoided in any way by nutrition or exercise. But, and this is big, is what exercise actually means in this situation. IF you were at say 80% peak possible endurance at age 50 and then took up thru hiking and maximized your potential to the point where you were near 100% possible endurance at age 60 you would be right at 2% higher endurance than you were at age 50. Maintain that out to age 70 and you are only about 13% below where you were at age 50.

Considering that we hikers are not in the weightlifting sports where it is not possible to maintain the 100% max muscle effort results past about age 50 we are in luck.

Hiking as I have described (at say 66% max effort as someone said) you are not going to have a really deep drop off in results as you age because we are not trying to hit max effort but just put in a full day of moderate effort. So if you train towards your upper endurance limit it will be no big deal to be able to hike 8-10 hours a day even at 70 and this will result in a 20 mile day even for 70 year olds.

The biggest impact for an older person being able to do big miles over the course of a moderate effort day is base conditioning. If you are older it does take a bit more determination to get out there every day so that your base conditioning stays high. If you drift away from such conditioning and have to build it back up this is very hard to do at a more advanced age than it is when young due to the body's loss during ageing of the ability to heal and grow rapidly. The approximate figures on this aspect are that in his prime an 18 year old male can exercise very hard with little chance of injury and, with no further effort, his body will grow his muscle mass, strengthen its tendons and ligaments, and increase bone density for at least 7 days. And he will not start to lose significant strength for at least 2-3 weeks. Now a 63 year old geezer like myself goes out and works out as hard as you can on day one will only continue to gain strength for 2-3 days after putting in the effort and will start to lose strength again almost immediately. So what this means for the older person is that you can never take more than 1 day off in a row or you will have trouble holding condition and if you take a week off (as us lazy old people are want to do) then it is going to take you about 3 weeks to get back to where you were.

Additionally the gain an older person gets from working out is quite small so reaching peak condition takes much longer than it does for a young person. A minor injury,like a slightly pulled muscle, to an 18 year old is probably a 2-3 day heal time. Whereas for a 70 year old it might be 2-3 weeks.

If you are an older hopeful hiker and want to get to the point where the hiking is easy physically then you have to be able to devote a long period of time to working consistently to reach that point. But if you do it it will happen.

All the above is to argue that older folks who want to maximize their hiking ability can do it, but they need to work at it every day and in a very gradual fashion. This is what I try and do. I hike every day both with and without a pack. I start ramping up my training a LONG time before a big hike (2-3 months) and aim for the ability to do at least 20 mile days from day 1. The big reason to pursue such an ability is that it makes the hiking far more enjoyable. If the hiking is painful and you find it really exhausting it is not much fun. Get in good shape and it is easy.

Bronk
02-08-2018, 11:42
My first day on the AT I was hiking up a steep hill and I was passed by a 77 year old man smoking a cigarette. So it really has nothing to do with age and more to do with you. Everybody passed me. It took me 4 months to hike 850 miles. I could do 20 mile days but didn't have much fun doing it, so I would do 10 to 12 a day and also took a lot of zero days so that my average mileage ended up being about 7 miles a day.

4eyedbuzzard
02-08-2018, 18:53
My first day on the AT I was hiking up a steep hill and I was passed by a 77 year old man smoking a cigarette. So it really has nothing to do with age and more to do with you. Everybody passed me. It took me 4 months to hike 850 miles. I could do 20 mile days but didn't have much fun doing it, so I would do 10 to 12 a day and also took a lot of zero days so that my average mileage ended up being about 7 miles a day.The only real measure of hiking IMO is whether or not you enjoyed your hike and the time outdoors. Whether you hike 7 or 17 or 27 or 37 mpd, it's still the slowest way possible of actually getting anywhere, and done for no reason other than the enjoyment of the journey itself. Why hurry?

MuddyWaters
02-08-2018, 19:02
The only real measure of hiking IMO is whether or not you enjoyed your hike and the time outdoors. Whether you hike 7 or 17 or 27 or 37 mpd, it's still the slowest way possible of actually getting anywhere, and done for no reason other than the enjoyment of the journey itself. Why hurry?

Well if you go too slow you have to carry too much food and your load is too heavy and you won't enjoy yourself as much. Unless your initials are TW.

The same can be said for going too fast.

There is an Optimum for everybody, a range can which they can enjoy themselves the most.

This is probably in the 10 to 15 mile range based on average people's experiences.
More for some less for others .

I met a 73 year old woman a couple of years ago section hiking the trail over two or three years. Her first year she hiked about 700 miles. She averaged about 5 miles a day. Worked for her. I'd be like, what you do with the other 10 hours of daylight?

It's not really a question of enjoying yourself it's a question of being able to plan how much time is going to take you to do something. And there's no way for an individual to know what to expect if they have no experience. The real answer is get out there and get some experience and then you'll know how many miles per day you can hike and you'll know how many miles per day you want to hike.

I honestly can't imagine someone setting out to long-distance hike without ever having hiked at least a couple of over niters before but lotsa people seem to want to do that.

gwschenk
02-08-2018, 19:10
I've been hiking long enough to know it doesn't matter. Just go out and hike. What happens happens. Life's too short to worry about matters of no consequence.

rocketsocks
02-08-2018, 19:38
I've been hiking long enough to know it doesn't matter. Just go out and hike. What happens happens. Life's too short to worry about matters of no consequence.this^^^^^^^^^^

TexasBob
02-08-2018, 21:09
I've been hiking long enough to know it doesn't matter. Just go out and hike. What happens happens. Life's too short to worry about matters of no consequence.

So true. If you are not enjoying yourself then you are wasting time that could be spent doing something that makes you happy. Hiking is not a competitive sport.

QiWiz
02-09-2018, 17:05
You really won't know till you see how it goes for you. Listen to your body and don't force it. A lighter pack will help with more comfortable miles. Starting early each day and ending later also make for more miles. I have not done a thru, but from Springer approach through to Hot Springs in three weeks at age 57 and overweight by 50 pounds, I was able to do 13 miles/day on average in the first half, gradually increasing to 16 miles per day in the second half. I'm sure that if I had been able to continue hiking, my daily mileage would have gone up a bit more still. FWIW, I did 20 miles on my last day into Hot Springs from the top of Max Patch.

Elaikases
02-09-2018, 18:13
It's not really a question of enjoying yourself it's a question of being able to plan how much time is going to take you to do something. And there's no way for an individual to know what to expect if they have no experience. The real answer is get out there and get some experience and then you'll know how many miles per day you can hike and you'll know how many miles per day you want to hike.

I honestly can't imagine someone setting out to long-distance hike without ever having hiked at least a couple of over niters before but lotsa people seem to want to do that.

It seems that over half the books are by people who just hit the trail and learn as they go until they finish. It amazes me. It also tells me just how flexible the trail is.

Lynnette
02-10-2018, 13:56
Well - I am 64.5. Been hiking since I was 17. When I plan my hikes I shoot for single digit days. I will hike longer and further occasionally as the trails dictate. I hike for 13.5 days where upon my body says it has shaken parts loose that normally belong together and SIT. I seems that on day 14 my body wants to subject itself to fractures WO any impact. O I take my supplements year round but have learned stop at day 14. The longest day in 2017 was 25 trail miles followed by 2 miles of asphalt. Tahoe Rim. Water was the driving factor. But the Sierra is so beautiful you dont even realize you are covering miles.

colorado_rob
02-10-2018, 14:48
Just another data point.... I'm 62 (almost), and I did start noticing my average backpacking MPH pace at the same effort was slowing over the last few years. But my MPD pace has not slacked as much, meaning I just hike longer hours on a given day than I used to. Basically, one very small "benefit" of getting older is that our long-term endurance stays with us longer than our strength and speed.

I do notice one thing more now though: Say we're (my wife and I, she is 60) hiking 15-16 mile days on a trail such as the AT. If we push a 19-20 mile day, no matter that we're in excellent hiking shape, the "pain" level in those last few miles goes up significantly. In other words, we can do 15-16 without a thought, but 19-20 starts hurting, plus we feel it the next day.

Keep hiking!

Sailor (The other one)
02-11-2018, 08:06
This is a longish post. I'm using writing it to dial in our plan.
Thank you all for the very helpful information. Reading through it and constructing this post have helped a great deal.
The only serious factor affecting our mileage is resupply. We have certain nutrition and medicine needs to plan for. But realistically we need our plan – and our attitude - to be flexible.
We have done four section hikes on the AT in Georgia and lots of 1-3 night trips in Florida before we moved to North Carolina. While obviously we found important differences in terrain between Florida and Georgia, we found the Florida sand and brutal heat as much as an endurance challenge as the Georgia mountains.
On our section hikes – with no or little pre-hike getting-in-shape - we averaged 2.5 miles a day the first week and five the second each time. We had feared that such low mileage might make a long-hike-maybe-a-thru-hike impractical, but your feedback has eliminated that fear.
We learned to schedule our major meal and a longish rest at lunch, which helped increase our average mileage with no pain. On each trip we had mail drops but learned not to let them dictate our schedule. We learned that to supply our food/med needs was important but also that no plan survives the first day. So we are flexible and have learned to trust that God, the trail and trail angels will provide. It took me a while to get that. They always have for us in the past, like when our mail drop didn't make it to Neel's Gap and a trail angel drove us to Blairsville and back so we could resupply at a grocery store. He and the rest of the staff said it was too expensive to resupply in their store and volunteered to drive us. Nice people.
We also expect we will supplement our resupply boxes with town food, especially if we are lucky enough to start burning serious calories and start dropping a lot of weight. I hope.
We love both hiking and camping. Very happy doing either. If we need to rest an extra day, we enjoy it. If we need to hike a little further, we can enjoy that too. It is encouraging that several of you note that while you average X number of miles you can go X+ when necessary.
We're a husband/wife/dog family. Our pace is also set by our slowest member that day, the dog stays leashed, we stop to smell every other flower, pee on almost every bush and explore some side trails. We carry a tent and camp near but not in shelters when possible because they often have privies that my wife Mudpie considers a luxury.
We plan to start out very, very slowly, averaging 2.5 miles daily even if we have gotten to 5 miles a day average in our training. Our experience has been that we tend to lose our appetites during the first week. This gives us the possibility of averaging even less than 2.5 miles a day until our first mail drop if we need to.
Our experience, and your input, have underscored the need to get into the best shape we can before we start. We have started with a diet and each have lost several pounds so far, including the over-weight dog.
We live in the North Carolina mountains and have a cabin on 2.5 acres of wooded hills bordering on national forest. I made a hiking trail duplicating some of the AT trail we've experienced like straight up/straight down, switchbacks, rocks, roots, fallen trees, cut-in dirt/log/rock steps, etc. This we hike several times a week and plan to get to doing daily We are just south of the Chunky Gal trail and the 25-mile loop Fires Creek Rim Trail. Our goal is to be able to average at least five miles a day. We plan to do the 25-mile loop over 5 days in April a couple weeks before our May start at Springer.
We are far from doing all our planned exercise and hiking perfectly due to other responsibilities, illness and laziness However, even if our pre-hike get-in-shape plans do not get as done as we'd like, we're going anyway, building into our plan time to get our trail legs.
We also plan for an average week to be something like 2 hike days, 1 camp zero day, three hike days, one town zero day, depending on what the trail/resupply points/our energy levels dictate. When I was a personal trainer I learned well that adequate rest is a least as important as exercise to increase both strength and endurance. We also plan to try to get to mail drops right around when food we're carrying is gone but resupply from stores if we're too slow. We won't suffer if we don't have our preferred food every day and we plan carrying a couple days extra meds just in case.
We have also adjusted our pack weight as we've learned. We've gotten the lightest versions of what we can both afford and not destroy. Silnylon but no Cuben. Mudpie can be brutal on gear and destroyed our first and only cuben dry sack the first time she touched it. We have one titanium cook pot between us, but we also have two big double wall titanium cups that keep our necessary-for-survival morning coffee hot even when it was 23 degrees out. We've gotten lighter packs, but ones that can handle more than our usual weight if they need to. The Granite Gear packs that replaced our first ones were light but very uncomfortable when carrying their maximum weights. We also hated that packing them was like stuffing sausage while wearing gloves. Our gear was partly chosen to avoid daily frustration rituals like that. We have a pump for our 3-inch thick 24-in wide sleep pads which eliminated our old folks hip and shoulder pain. Our tent is huge but light for its hugeness – a 5-pound Shangri-La 5 that eliminated Mudpie's claustrophobia-induced anxiety she suffered in our Double Rainbow. It also holds the dog and all our gear, which we like. We've learned that anything that causes frustration isn't worth it.
We really appreciate those who HYOH and are not bound by others styles or values, from the lightest who don't even (horrors to this ex-chef) cook their food, to TipiWalter, my I've-done-it-my-way-for-over-100-trips hero. I have had a bad habit of thinking I know all I need and that I can determine on my own how things will be without considering others' experience or getting some experience first. I'm slowly getting rid of that and learning to learn. When Mudpie asked me what besides a health problem would make us get off the trail I said “When it stops being fun. But we can't make that decision on a bad day.”
Thanks for your help.

TexasBob
02-11-2018, 11:22
In 2008 we met an older couple in the Smokies who started at Springer two months earlier in February. They were averaging around 5 miles a day just taking their time and enjoying the trip. I know they made it as far as Harper's Ferry by August. A good example of hike your own hike.

Tipi Walter
02-11-2018, 12:58
In 2008 we met an older couple in the Smokies who started at Springer two months earlier in February. They were averaging around 5 miles a day just taking their time and enjoying the trip. I know they made it as far as Harper's Ferry by August. A good example of hike your own hike.

Excellent and mirrors my desires. I figure I could do 7 miles a day with one zero day a week and finish the trail in about 352 days. Perfect.

Or do 2 miles a day with a 30 day food load and finish the trail in 4 years and several months. What a great trip that would be. And only resupply once a month.

George
02-11-2018, 21:47
shelters ( and associated facilities) average 7-8 mi apart, if you lunch at one and stay near the next, it usually sets a comfortable pace

Plain Pete
03-12-2018, 21:08
My buddy and I will be hiking the sections north of Pearisburg this May less than a month before our 77th birthday(we are 3 days apart). We hike because we love it and the only mileage we may worry about is the next spring. We usually shoot for 10 miles a day and often do more. We enjoy a leisurely cup of coffee in the morning, talk almost constantly and often take a nap at lunch. Will I complete my AT section hike? Probably not, but I will have had had a great time.

RangerZ
03-12-2018, 22:57
We need to know about comfortable average daily mileage for old folks like us - 60 years old + - for long distance hikes on the AT, from long section hikes to thru hikes. We are not interested in hiking big miles for big miles sake or to make a deadline. We're more like easy does it folks and if we don't complete a thru in a year, we don't care.
Thanks.

Wait a minute, 60 is old, folks?

MuddyWaters
03-13-2018, 01:14
Wait a minute, 60 is old, folks?

40 is old for some. By that age some look like 10 miles of bad road.

Shutterbug
03-13-2018, 01:30
We need to know about comfortable average daily mileage for old folks like us - 60 years old + - for long distance hikes on the AT, from long section hikes to thru hikes. We are not interested in hiking big miles for big miles sake or to make a deadline. We're more like easy does it folks and if we don't complete a thru in a year, we don't care.
Thanks.

My wife and I, both 74, often hike with younger family members. We have observed that age doesn't have much to do how many miles one can comfortably hike. It is often the younger ones who are unable to do the long hikes. We do 14 mile hikes without difficulty. Three things make a big difference in the number of miles, elevation change, weather and trail condition. In the Grand Canyon where there are big changes in elevation, we don't make 2 miles an hour, but on flat trails, we can cover 3 miles per hour.

cmoulder
03-13-2018, 08:29
Wait a minute, 60 is old, folks?


40 is old for some. By that age some look like 10 miles of bad road.

Indeed. I'm 62 and don't feel "old" at all.

I was down in TN last Aug for the eclipse and was climbing up a steep section of trail (Naked Ground) and caught up with a guy also on the way up. He said he was pretty fast, too, back when he was 21 but now that he was an old guy of 41 he has slowed down a lot.

TwoSpirits
03-13-2018, 09:38
I don't plan on getting old until sometime around 80.

That being said, even at 55 I've noticed a lot of changes that I simply accept as the price of [some] wisdom & maturity. There are some changes that threaten and lurk around every corner, but I do what I can to avoid and/or mitigate those -- you know, eat right, exercise, and taking my Geritol every day. (It's an old commercial, kids.)

Most of us are in better health and physical shape at this age than our parents were, so comparing ourselves to them and their abilities & activities at the same age is largely useless. While I know that my bones and joints need a little more care and attention, ans that my recovery time is longer, for the most part I am as fit as I feel. If I train correctly (albeit more patiently), I could make the same miles as anyone in their 30's...just not day after day after day.

jimmyjam
03-13-2018, 09:45
If you want to hike longer miles, start early, hike late, take lots of breaks. I try to start my sections with a 10 to 12 mile day. After a few days I'm easily doing 15 miles. After that I can do low 20's but it gets difficult after 18 miles. I like doing 10 miles by lunch time and then taking my time and doing another 5 to 8 after lunch.

peakbagger
03-13-2018, 10:59
There is some pretty recent research on cardio function and older folks. If folks start doing frequent cardio in their sixties they can improve heart function and delay a loss of function. If they wait until their seventies, the heart has already started shrinking and getting less flexible and cardio is far less effective at restoring function.

Another Kevin
03-13-2018, 21:05
I did a 137-mile trip at sixty. I planned 8-10 mile days because I knew I wasn't in peak shape (I don't get *too* bad, I make it a point to carry a pack at least a couple of miles every blessed day). By the end of the trip, I was much more comfortable with 12-15. I didn't like getting to my planned campsite in the middle of the afternoon with nothing to do for a few hours, so I more often just hiked on and adjusted plans. All that meant in the end was that each town stop was half a day longer. Since I don't really have enough long-distance experience to do a town stop efficiently, the extra time in civilization was welcome.

egilbe
03-13-2018, 22:27
There is some pretty recent research on cardio function and older folks. If folks start doing frequent cardio in their sixties they can improve heart function and delay a loss of function. If they wait until their seventies, the heart has already started shrinking and getting less flexible and cardio is far less effective at restoring function.
My fitbit tells me my Cardio health is Excellent for a man my age. Its still pretty good for a 35 year old ifI change my birthdate in my profile.

TexasBob
03-14-2018, 10:48
One thing that happens as you age is that your maximum heart rate decreases. Your heart rate times the amount of blood your heart pumps with each beat determines how much oxygen you can deliver to your tissues to perform aerobic exercise. At 63 my maximum heart rate is about 157 bpm. When I was 30 is was 190. Vigorous aerobic exercise gets your heart rate up to 70-85% of your maximum heart rate so at 63 that is about 110 to 134 bpm. When I was 30 it was 133 to 160 bpm. No wonder I can't do some of things now that I used to do when I was younger.

Malto
03-14-2018, 14:51
Well, you just answered your own question. Many many backpackers are obsessed with daily mileage, some aren't. Some endurance athlete-types like Skurka overly concentrate on Miles Gained Per Day but 99% of us are not endurance athletes.

As others have said, your question cannot really be answered. Here's a similar thread you may find interesting---

https://backpackinglight.com/forums/topic/a-strategy-for-older-people-for-thru-hiking/#comments

In December I went out with some friends and it took us four hours to backpack 3 miles thru a blizzard. We set up camp after 3 miles. "Verboten!!!" many would say but who's in charge of your hike, you or them??

The high mileage types like to say "you're a camper not a hiker" if you're only pulling low daily miles. There's an elitist tone with such people. But you already made your point clear: You're "not interested in hiking big miles" and "we don't care if we complete a thru in a year." Amen.
Not to be confused with the elitist tone of people such as you on the subject.

peakbagger
03-14-2018, 17:05
I got the full cardiac testing when I was 50 as I has some strange side effects from a new prescription. They did the dye job where they take photos of the heart and the blood vessels and then a few weeks later I did the treadmill test complete with a couple of folks with paddles at the ready. I maxed out the incline and the load. I normally don't run. A few weeks later I got to sit down with the cardiologist and he asked me what the heck I was doing there. He couldn't find any plaques or narrowed arteries anywhere. My understanding is that with most folks the inflammation in the arteries is around in the 30 and 40's and the cholesterol forms plaques inside the arteries to deal with the inflammation is a reaction to systemic inflammation. It just takes until the 60s for the plaques to break loose.

My prior doctor know I hiked and figured I was doing unmonitored stress testing every weekend