Older hikers, start smart
and stay strong on the trail

By Diane Spicer

Older hikers, welcome!

You're an official member of the trail sages because you're a senior hiker.

Lots of life lessons in your hiking tool kit, right?

But now you're needing some tips tailored to a body that isn't 25 anymore. I hear you!

Essential tips for older hikers

Let's break these hiking tips into two groups, to give you the most benefit from them on the trail.

Just starting out as an older hiker

You've caught the hiking bug, but may not know how to ease into the hiking life. These tips will jump start your new desire to hit the trail, whether you're 40 or over 65.

1. Start with small goals: a 3 mile day hike in good weather on a trail that gives you just enough challenge to feel satisfied, not defeated. 

2. Pay attention to what is working for you in terms of gear, so when you buy a different hiking backpack or pair of hiking boots you can choose a brand or style that fits your short or long torso, your wide or narrow feet, etc. Strongly consider buying a pair of trekking poles right away.

3. Hike with others who are enthusiastic but around your skill level.

4. It's okay to hike with deeply conditioned, expert hikers but don't let them push you into hikes you're not ready to take on. That's the fastest way to sour the entire experience for you.

5. Build some conditioning into your daily life by walking, stretching, improving your posture when you sit in front of the computer screen, wearing your backpack around the backyard or nearby park, and whatever else gives you an edge on the trail. Little things add up to big things!

6. Expect some muscle soreness, but if you start small this should be minimal. If you're too sore to move after a hike, dial back your hiking goal next time as you build endurance and strength.

Continuing to hike through your fifties and beyond

You're a hiker, but now you're noticing that the things you "got away with" in decades past are coming back to haunt you.

Time for some new strategies for your aging hiker body!

1. Replace old or worn out gear and clothing, no matter how attached you are to it. I had to demote a pair of 8 year old boots that had nearly zero tread on them to my gardening chores. The deep tread on the new pair of hiking boots keeps me stable and upright regardless of trail conditions, money well spent.

2. Lighten your load deliberately. This goes along with Tip #1: let go of the heavy, overbuilt gear that served you well in your younger days and embrace the new lightweight fabrics and designs in hiking gear and outdoor clothing.

3. Pay close attention to weather forecasts and published trail reports. Cherry pick your hiking days to maximize your strengths. For example, if you know your knees get creaky on steep downhill sections, don't avoid them, but save them for a dry, clear day when you can take as many breaks as needed rather than hurrying through stormy conditions.

4. Your joints are probably talking to your brain with vigorous feedback: pain, discomfort, tugs, alarming snapping or clicking noises. Read up on well documented supplements and foods that support your joints, such as glucosamine, MSM, herbal extracts including curcumin, or grass fed collagen peptides for starters.

5. It's time to consider improving your hydration routine. Buy what I would call a large sippy cup (like the one I use) and keep it filled with plain water. Add thin slices of lemon, lime or cucumber, or your favorite fruit chunks on a rotating basis to keep yourself interested in sipping water throughout the day.

6. Give yourself some grace. Some days on the trail will feel easier than others, and often you can't tell ahead of time which is which. Pick a comfortable pace, keep putting one foot in front of the other, and if you need to sit down or turn around "early", so be it.

Perks of being an older hiker

You've reached (or are approaching) an age anywhere over forty years.

You are aware of the fact that older hikers deserve a bit of recognition, and a touch of special treatment.

• Like a discounted rate for entrance into national parks.

In America, we're dominated by media messages telling us that the older we get, the weaker & less worthwhile we become.

I learned to ignore that junk years ago.

I hope you did, too.

It doesn't matter to us unless we let it matter

Out on the trail, it doesn't matter what color mascara I have on (to be honest, I haven't used a mascara wand in 3 decades).

Or if my lipstick is settled into the creases in my lips. Again, only a theoretical problem, since I don't wear it anymore.

It doesn't matter if my legs are smooth and waxed, if my eyebrows are plucked just so, if my frown lines are covered up, or if my shirt matches my heels boots.

You see, older hikers have gotten over ourselves.

What does that mean?

It means our priorities are focused on what matters on a hike.

Take me as an example.

What does matter on a hike is how strong I am, how prepared I feel, and where I'm going:

• a waterfall? a beautiful lake? a viewpoint? tonight's camping spot? It's all good!
  

Older hikers are not about smashing speed or endurance records.

At least, I'm not!

I go as slowly or quickly as I want to along a trail, not bothered by trying to compete or impress.

If my feet hurt, I take a break.

If I spot a flower or rock I've never seen before, I stop and look at it!

Such wisdom... and it only took 5+ decades to beat it into my head :)

Older hikers rock!
But we do have our issues

I recall Kermit the Frog singing about how it's not easy being green.

It's not easy getting older as a hiker, either, dear Kermit.

But we can do a lot to stay in top form for the trail.

To get started, read about elder hiking & some smart tips for managing in an aging hiker's body.

Or keep reading to discover tips and trail wisdom in several categories:

• Health
• Humor
• Heart
• Head

I'm hoping you'll find these topics to be useful as you age gracefully as an older female hiker.

Healthy aging as a hiker

Self care grows more important as your hiking body accumulates birthdays.

Treat yourself right with these tips:

• Hiking through menopause
• Nutrition for menopausal hikers
  
• Strong hiking bones
• Injury prevention
• Handling inflammation
• Stretching to prevent injury
• Back stretches
• Hiking with sore knees
• Hiking with arthritic knees
• How to handle sore feet after hiking
• What to do about swollen hands after a hike
• Avoiding falls on a hike
• Hiking with glasses
  
• Combine yoga and hiking
• Helpful hiking infographics
  

Humor and inspiration as an older hiker

The older I get, the funnier things seem to me.

Is this true for you, too?

I am so grateful that I can finally laugh a little at myself, and see the humor in situations that twenty years ago would have seemed very grim.

When I look in the mirror and see my laugh lines, I know that I'm a woman who can appreciate a good joke.

So I'll share sources of humor here.

• Best hiking quotes
• Fun hiking stuff

And I extend an invitation for you to send me your favorite trail humor, using this CONTACT link.

What makes you laugh, on or off the trail?

What sort of trail silliness do you get up to?

The heart of the matter as a hiker

You've gotta have heart if you're a hiker.

By heart, I mean courage.

• The French word for heart, "coeur", is embedded in the English word, right?

Not only courage, but compassion, loving kindness, and a bit of a feisty spirit!

I've shared sources of inspiration for older hikers - examples of outdoorsy women who pushed beyond themselves to achieve something they believed in.

• Like Grandma Gatewood
• And Helen Thayer
  

I use these women as examples of what I want to be when I'm "really" old... which I define as 20 years into the future, regardless of what each birthday adds to my cumulative years on Earth.

It's also important to keep pushing yourself, trying new types of hiking as you age.

You can read about my remote hiking adventures to see how I approach life as an older hiker: using a raft to access the wilderness, arriving at backpacking sites via bush plane, and more. 

And finally, we come to HEAD

As in Smarts. Wisdom. Knowledge. Trail Savvy.

The Outdoor School of Hard Knocks, one might say.

That's where the resources on this website come in.

I've poured out what's in my head after 50+ years on the trail, and invite you to find what you're looking for: 

• Use the UP arrow over there on the right to go up to the search box if you're on a computer.
• The pull down menu offers you broad categories to explore.
• Use this HFH site map to locate hiking topics of interest.

Don't forget to sign up for the free monthly newsletter to receive the latest hiking news and content from Hiking For Her. 

Let's just admit it: older hikers are amazing

Yes, let's just admit right here that as we age, we become stronger and smarter hikers.

And we also have constraints we need to work with to keep ourselves going.

We can do it! Trail time is priceless and well worth an effort so we can keep going ... back for more adventures.

Thanks for being an older hiker. You rock!

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