[PJ1]

Wandering around the in the wilderness by yourself seems like a bad idea, regardless of one's age.

incapacitate my car

I will turn 70 in a couple of months. I am, for the most part, alone on my place - about 23 sq km or 9 square miles. The nearest neighbour (if they happen to be home) would be 16 km or 10 miles away. Not many of the properties around me have permanent residents. We have plenty of rough scrub but no cliffs or anything like that (with my poor balance, that is something to be thankful for). We have only patchy mobile (read "cell phone") reception. But I work out there so I just get on with it. I always carry a camera but photography is rarely my first priority. Dangers? Venomous snakes could be a problem but I leave them alone. Other wildlife? I usually have a rifle within reach if I am near my vehicle. At other times I am carrying one. A big feral pig could be unpredictable. But I have been charged by a large dingo/feral dog hybrid (20kg or 44 pounds) and if he hadn't snarled as he came in I might have been in trouble. Instead, because I was armed, he was in trouble. A vehicle breakdown is more likely and I have walked home a couple of times. If not being alone was the criterion, I would not have much of a life. But then, few people could relate to my life anyway. So, yes, go for it but take reasonable precautions.

[slowpez]

I can't remember when we got old (my husband will be 79 this year and I will be 76) but every now and then we forget our age. We have an RV and are able to travel as much as we want. Our hiking has tapered off to 4 miles on flat ground and 2 miles with any elevation but we always go together. Bad things can happen anywhere and, to be honest, I am more afraid of drivers on the road than I am of snakes, bears, or other critters. You can leave wildlife alone and give them their space but you can't do that with some crazy person behind the wheel of a vehicle. We do let people know where we are going if we remember (the memory is the first to go ) We were hiking the Highline Trail in Glacier NP a few years ago and I fell through an ice bridge and tumbled about 20 ft. down the mountain until I found footing on a rock. Hubby yelled down that he would throw me the rope we brought until he remembered it was in my backpack. Thankfully, there was someone in front of us who came to the rescue and he threw me a rope and hauled me up. No damage done, finished the hike, the wildflowers were stunning. I guess my bottom line is, we are aging, we know our balance isn't what it was nor is our stamina but we still enjoy being outdoors and being together and if something bad happens at least we will have died doing what we want and having fun to boot.

[normhead]

There are many many Algonquin canoeists that do week long or longer trips all the time. On longer trips, a GPS is always a good idea, if you know where you are, you can get where you're going. As noted, if you have a few basic survival skills, you're more likely to die on the highway going to the park, than you are to die in the park. If you want to go on about what you shouldn't do, it's probably drive in a car. But if you do decide to drive a car, wilderness can be great place to hang out. Safer than driving even.

[aslyfox]

one thing that has not been mentioned yet

the cost of rescue [ or attempts at rescue ]

if someone becomes lost or incapacitated

some jurisdictions have even started to charge people rescued for some or all of those costs.

[Rondec]

I think the big things are to know your limitations, not go off trail, and to prepare in advance for things to happen that you don't expect (back pack with safety equipment, some type of alert device -- not a cell phone). The worst things that happen are often things like sprained ankles that could really impede your ability to get out, even if you are with a hiking partner. At the same time, you can make things pretty safe with a little effort.

[clackers]

Obviously if you trek away from your car in an area without cell phone coverage rent or invest in a Personal Locator Beacon.

Wirhout data, Google Maps can be useless - and even downloading offline shows roads but not dirt tracks, so this is where a dedicated GPS unit like a Magellan helps.

Obviously first aid kit and medications take up room in a bag but they're useless back in the car.

For Australians, a wide bandage should be taken in case of snake bite. The old tourniquet method is now regarded as not only ineffective (venom travels through the muscle tissue) but after hours in place results in limb damage.

[dstar]

I now 65 so when start hiking again after knee accident in desert and mount I start rented satellite phone
Plus my standard medical kit plus extra strong energy bar plus military style special very bright flash light
Plus daily gym keep in good shape
I try same principal never give up if stop you fail

[normhead]

I now 65 so when start hiking again after knee accident in desert and mount I start rented satellite phone
Plus my standard medical kit plus extra strong energy bar plus military style special very bright flash light
Plus daily gym keep in good shape
I try same principal never give up if stop you fail

For those of us who have always been active, if it comes to death or inactivity, we are probably going to choose death anyway.
At some point it comes down to, "Where do you want to die?"

What I consider risky now, is not what I would have considered risky 20 years ago. And if you're not getting out, you're not having fun. You just change your level of behaviour to match your level of mobility.

[dstar]

Absolutely correct
But add one more just try have goal one more step ahead as you can
Very simple sample in Albuquerque now go Olympic game for senior several thousand plY age no limited so never give up

[lesmore49]

I like to keep active. I played sports when I was younger, hockey mostly, but I was no Wayne Gretzky. Throughout the ages ( my ages ) I've always tried to follow what Clint Eastwood said in one of the Dirty Harry movies. It was something along the lines of ..'A good man, knows his limitations..' It has been a good life maxim to follow.

So in life I try to keep myself in somewhat half decent shape. I used to go to a gym and walks about 30-45 minutes a day at their walking track. Great resource but boring circling around and around. I've got only so many thoughts that can keep me occupied during these walks indoors.

I find walking outdoors much more interesting. You never know what you're going to see and I can always carry a camera with me. In the city, it's my Ricoh GR ll. In the country my K1/K5...28-105/100 macro/55-300/18-135.

I want to keep on doing things/seeing things as I go through the aging process. So I try to extend my necessary walking wherever I go. If I go to the grocery store in the mall, I park my vehicle away in the corner of the parking lot, instead of close to the store entrance. I do this for two reasons. One, to get extra walking time in, two to park my car in a far away, isolated area...to avoid getting dents in my car's body from careless parkers.

The point is, continue doing the normal things in life as we get older, but work in some extra exercise by upping the walking distance . I do believe that if you don't use it, you lose it...when it comes to your body's capability.

I did mention the importance of good footwear , but I need to stress this. I've seen so many people of every age wear unsupportive footwear. Not good. I f you twist your ankle, damage your yourself in some other way due to poor shoes/boots...well you maybe off walking for awhile and that enforced idleness is not good for the rest of the body either.

I primarily wear hiking boots with orthotic insoles that support my ankle/foot . I haven't had any issues wearing this kind of footware while I have had difficulty wearing sandals, etc. I realize everybody's needs are different and what works for me, won't necessarily work for others.

[aslyfox]

. . . Throughout the ages ( my ages ) I've always tried to follow what Clint Eastwood said in one of the Dirty Harry movies. It was something along the lines of ..'A good man, knows his limitations..' It has been a good life maxim to follow.. . .

being realistic about how your body has changed and thus the effect on your abilities is the key

You Tube

You Tube

have fun but be smart while you are doing it

[BigMackCam]

I did mention the importance of good footwear , but I need to stress this. I've seen so many people of every age wear unsupportive footwear. Not good. I f you twist your ankle, damage your yourself in some other way due to poor shoes/boots...well you maybe off walking for awhile and that enforced idleness is not good for the rest of the body either.

I actually saw this happen just a few days ago. I took a short vacation to a very rural area about 60 miles from my home, popular with hikers, casual walkers and those just looking to get away from it all. I'm not an enthusiastic hiker by any stretch of the imagination, but I have a decent (relatively inexpensive) pair of sturdy walking boots with plenty of ankle support, yet good flexibility. Some of the folks I encountered were wearing regular street shoes. One girl, maybe in her 30s, was wearing what appeared to be Nike trainers (!), and while she and her partner were clambering up a damp incline to an observation hide in woodland, the sole of one shoe slipped and her foot went over at an alarming angle. Thankfully, she was still able to put weight on it (so no break, I wouldn't think), but it put paid to their day out as they had to slowly make their way back to their car, about half a mile away...

Basic common sense mitigates risks like this and many, many others...

[lesmore49]

I actually saw this happen just a few days ago. I took a short vacation to a very rural area about 60 miles from my home, popular with hikers, casual walkers and those just looking to get away from it all. I'm not an enthusiastic hiker by any stretch of the imagination, but I have a decent (relatively inexpensive) pair of sturdy walking boots with plenty of ankle support, yet good flexibility. Some of the folks I encountered were wearing regular street shoes. One girl, maybe in her 30s, was wearing what appeared to be Nike trainers (!), and while she and her partner were clambering up a damp incline to an observation hide in woodland, the sole of one shoe slipped and her foot went over at an alarming angle. Thankfully, she was still able to put weight on it (so no break, I wouldn't think), but it put paid to their day out as they had to slowly make their way back to their car, about half a mile away...

Basic common sense mitigates risks like this and many, many others...

Quite true and the incident you reported is not uncommon. My hiking boots are mid scale, but the soles were less that satisfactory...thin, not much grip, while the uppers were/are excellent. I'm fortunate to use a top notch cobbler and he was able to attach some heavy duty, thick Vibram soles with great rubber grips. What a transformation. The cost was about $ 85, but well worth it.

A buddy of mine, my age, similar physical condition etc. goes out on moderate river trail walks with me over some semi challenging terrain. He wears shoes designed to never go off Main street (probably High Street would be the term for the UK) and sometimes it becomes a bit of a slip and a slide adventure...for him. At his age (same as mine) of course we don't heal as quickly or sometimes as successfully as we did when younger.

Les

---------- Post added 06-17-19 at 04:52 PM ----------

being realistic about how your body has changed and thus the effect on your abilities is the key

Magnum Force (10/10) Movie CLIP - A Man's Got to Know His Limitations (1973) HD - YouTube

have fun but be smart while you are doing it

I enjoyed that video clip. I've always been a fan of Dirty Harry movies and sometimes... wistfully... wonder where the new 'Dirty Harry's' will be coming from in today's movies.

[monochrome]

Next to correct footwear is the correct socks. Don’t overstuff the boots with thick socks, which constricts the foot and blood flow. Cold feet in winter is caused primarily by too tight footwear and not wearing a hat. In summer too tight footwear - especially when caused by incorrect socks - causes damp feet, hot spots and then blisters that, for older people, can result in seriously risky infections.

[Wheatfield]

For me, by far the biggest threat to health and safety is the people you may run into. For the most part, animals will steer clear of you, certainly if you leave them alone, it should be mutual.
I travel with a Rottweiler. They are big enough to be a little bit intimidating, and strong enough to carry quite a bit of my equipment. Bears will steer clear of dogs given the chance. They don't need the hassle.
One thing that I have changed in my travel habits is that I no longer travel south of the border. The last trip I took to the USA, I never felt comfortable. It's sad, there is some lovely scenery and I've made many trips to the American Southwest over the years, but the last time I was across the line, there was a meanness in the air that I had never felt before, and that I really didn't like.