Is it over?

[bamboo bob]

I'm a bit bummed out. I find that I'm just not motivated enough to hike like a used to. After 10-12 miles, I'm done. It's screwed up my trip planning and makes me question what I'm even doing. This summer a 7 week trip turned into 2 weeks in Colorado and a three week in Maine into two days. Maybe it's time to hang them up and do something else. My wife suggests we look at battery assist bikes. I like to play outside but it ain't what it used to be. I've done 30+ days a few times and routinely 20+. Is this it. Where's the hemlock? Anybody else go through this kind of change. Did you stay home? Start building bird houses?

[rafe]

I know the feeling, but not ready to give up yet! Speaking for myself, I think I'll be shifting more to day hikes and local trails. Lowering goals and expectations a bit. Especially now with winter approaching.

I know it's not just me. Late last winter I hooked up with a hiking partner by way of the VFTT website. We've done eight or ten day hikes together so far. The woman I hooked up with is a few years older than me (65 to my 62.) First few hikes, I had some trouble keeping up with her. But the last three or four times, the situation has reversed, and a few times now we've failed to meet even our modest goals for the day. On the plus side, I've re-learned the pleasures of day hiking vs. extended treks in the woods. I just don't care for the driving involved, tearing up and down Rte. 93.

[Traveler]

I'm a bit bummed out. I find that I'm just not motivated enough to hike like a used to. After 10-12 miles, I'm done. It's screwed up my trip planning and makes me question what I'm even doing. This summer a 7 week trip turned into 2 weeks in Colorado and a three week in Maine into two days. Maybe it's time to hang them up and do something else. My wife suggests we look at battery assist bikes. I like to play outside but it ain't what it used to be. I've done 30+ days a few times and routinely 20+. Is this it. Where's the hemlock? Anybody else go through this kind of change. Did you stay home? Start building bird houses?

I think at some point anyone doing this serious hits that wall. Sometimes a change of trail renews the spirit, travel to a far place to do some hiking on unfamiliar terrain and vistas. Could be taking 6 months off may turn the corner. Finding someone you can mentor has also been a spark for more than a few over the years. That allows you to see the activity through the eyes of someone fairly new to it and is likely to renew your spirit for all that goes into it. There could be a lot going on in your life currently that clouds things up, preoccupying your thoughts and not allowing you to fully "zen out" on the trail itself, which like most things in life will pass.

I wish you well in this period of time, you obstacle here is likely all of ours in time....

[moytoy]

I think I can answer yes to all your questions. The only thing that hasn't waned for me is the desire to see what is around the next corner, whats over that hill or what the future is for me. I have had to slow my pace whether I'm hiking, working or playing with the grandkids. But the desire to do it is still there. This past August I spent 2 weeks on a cruise ship to Alaska with my wife. Because she can't hike anymore I do this for her but I'm never completly happy doing it. After a week on the cruise I was around all these people who whould look at me like I was on a different planet if I mentioned anything about a hike in the woods. To some it was the thrill of a lifetime to see a bear or bald eagle out the window of a bus. I knew then that I had to get back on the trail soon before it happened to me.

[map man]

I don't really have an answer or advice but I can commiserate. I haven't done the long hikes you have -- in the decade I've been backpacking two week section hikes are the longest time I can get away from work. But I've noticed the last couple years that I have had a lot more moments on the trail when I wonder why I put myself through it, physically. My feet always hurt after a few days and hiking in the rain gets more and more unpleasant. But most of all I catch myself wondering, with so much that I love in life back at home (wife, pets, friends, other family) what am I doing out here on this cold and wet morning trying to gag down some tiresome trail food? With the prospect of more of the same stretching for days out in front of me?

The funny thing is that I still find myself dreaming big when it comes to backpacking. For the last decade I've been aspiring to an AT or PCT or Colorado Trail thru-hike when I retire around five years from now, and I still find I am aspiring to that. The gulf between what I actually enjoy when it comes to hiking and what I daydream about keeps getting wider and wider.

I sympathize with what you are experiencing. Thanks for letting me vent.

[rafe]

The gulf between what I actually enjoy when it comes to hiking and what I daydream about keeps getting wider and wider.

So sad but so true! I'm hoping I have at least one more long-ish hike ahead of me: the JMT. Hopefully summer '15 or '16.

Getting away from work is the big bugaboo, it's why most thru hikers are either under 25 or over 65. It's a shame how it works out -- when you reach the age at which you finally have free time, your body's too far gone to fully appreciate it.

[Pedaling Fool]

I'm a bit bummed out. I find that I'm just not motivated enough to hike like a used to. After 10-12 miles, I'm done. It's screwed up my trip planning and makes me question what I'm even doing. This summer a 7 week trip turned into 2 weeks in Colorado and a three week in Maine into two days. Maybe it's time to hang them up and do something else. My wife suggests we look at battery assist bikes. I like to play outside but it ain't what it used to be. I've done 30+ days a few times and routinely 20+. Is this it. Where's the hemlock? Anybody else go through this kind of change. Did you stay home? Start building bird houses?

Funny you mention battery assisted bike. Just yesterday I watched an old fat dude who was stopped at an intersection trying to get his gas-motor powered bike started. He got it started and was crossing the street, when it died and he was stuck in the middle of the intersection with cars honking at him. Instead of pedaling thru, he turned around and went back to the island to work on his bike; he didn't look like he used his pedals much. At least he had a cool looking little gas tank with flames painted on it

I don't know why you're feeling demotivated during your hikes, and that's an important question to answer, because it's the root cause, i.e. is it because of a feeling of: "Been here done that, nothing new..." or is it because of physical limitations which can be very demotivational, despite how much you love seeing what's "around the next corner".

I'd say take some time off and do NOT get a battery assisted bike


Why don't you join a crossfit group and set some goals and see if that changes your mindset. Look at some of these bad ass dudes, notice their ages

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NeLVMgz-yUo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0uPujOYfHA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHwUtOkt1wc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oH6moN9GB9k

[Sailing_Faith]

I am thankful to be in this body. I am in better shape now then I have been since I was 18.... But.

i have chronic migraines, and some days just can't do it.... I have found that it is better to settle for whatever I can do on these days then to do nothing. Where I see this post fitting into this thread is that I decided that even if all I could ever do was short days, I was not going to let that keep me out of the woods.

Not to wax too philosophical, but I have come to realize that this "problem of suffering" is not unique to me, or to anyone. We decide what we do with it, age, injury, or whatever.... A day in the woods (or on water for that matter) is better then a day on the couch....

Press on..... Good luck.

[Slo-go'en]

I feel your pain. Over the years I've spent a lot of nights out in the woods and have covered more miles then I can count. But as I get older, it gets harder to be motivated to do extended hikes. 200 miles of Virginia this spring and I had enough, but that was mostly due to a poor choice of boots which made my feet hurt more then usual.

Well, at least I have the advantage of living in a place where I can walk out my front door and go hiking for the day and get to see the mountains every day. Except today - where did those clouds come from anyway?

[Spirit Walker]

Bob - you're not alone. DH has had the same kind of issue. In his case, it's largely pain related. He no longer finds the rewards of backpacking worth the cost. It affects me, because I still can hike without much pain, and I still look forward to long hikes. But we have done less and less as the years go by.

You might try a long break, or picking up a new sport that still takes you outside: kayak, canoe, mountain bike, etc. I started running a few years ago, which provides lots of challenge, new goals and new accomplishments. We also got a large dog. Hiking with him means seeing the world in a whole new way. His excitement at being outside is contagious. We don't go on many long hikes, but we do get outside every day. It's enough to stay healthy and it does make our short hikes a lot of fun.

[CrumbSnatcher]

Bob, its not over til its over
"Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor!"

[Rocket Jones]

"He's on a roll."

[10-K]

What's wrong with 10-12 mile day hikes and 2 week trips?

It's different than what you've been doing, that's all.

[MuddyWaters]

If I wanted just to walk, I could walk around my block, or on flat trails thru the forest around me.

I hike, to see places that the other 99.999% of the world only sees on postcards.

New Zealand, Patagonia, Europe, PCT, CDT, alaska, grand canyon, Wind Rivers , yellowstone, Glacier NP, etc. There is more to see out there than most could see in a lifetime of hiking.

This keeps my interest up.

Do I long to go hike the AT thru some flat boring state? No. The AT is more about people for much of it, than about hiking, IMO.

[Coffee]

I hike, to see places that the other 99.999% of the world only sees on postcards.

This is what motivates me. I find it sad to see how most able bodied people limit what they see to whatever happens to be within a quarter mile of a paved road.

[Bronk]

Get a dog and name it 20 miles. Then you can say I walk 20 miles every day.

[Dogwood]

What's wrong with 10-12 mile day hikes and 2 week trips?

It's different than what you've been doing, that's all.

Exactly! There's plenty of allowance doing shorter mile length or shorter avg miles per day hikes. Not every hike has to be a multi month 1000+ mile hike. When I start feeling a bit burnt out it never lasts because I find ways to refresh or adapt on hikes. I make it my inspiration in life to - stay inspired. If I'm not inspired, than for me, I feel that means I'm not appreciating or tapping into something. I never want to take things for granted.

Here's an example. I'm currently hiking the Border Route Trail to the Superior Hiking Trail. But, when I arrived in Minneapolis with only a day I did a 18 mile long walk along the Mississippi River, took oodles of pics of architecture, and visited gardens. I took 7 days hiking the 65 mile Border Route Trail. Why? I fished and explored even more than usual along the way. This took a mental adjustment from a typical get er done damn it make those miles mindset I sometimes have when in a hardcore thru-hiker mental zone. Now, I'm thru-hiking the 300 mile Superior Hiking Trail as a continuation but this is my third day in Grand Marais. Doing "zeros"? No way! I took a class on how to build a canoe(yeah!), volunteered with the Garden Club doing some gardening, sampled the different smoked fish, talked with area organic gardeners/farmers, was offered a job(LOL), visited a museum, chatted it up with the Border Patrol, may HAVE A FREE sunset boat ride lined up on Lake Superior which depends on the weather right now, and did all the things a typically wet grungy hiker might do on what has become known as "zero days."

Keepin it real! - real lively

Hiking/thru-hiking is not just about hiking!

I have been looking into a electric bicycle though.

[Praha4]

Bob I know exactly what you mean. The challenge is as much mental as physical. With each year getting older, the little nagging injuries seem to pop up more frequently, especially the feet. I just decided I have to concentrate on stopping more often during the day for stretching and resting, and switching to hiking shoes with better support.....doing 20+ mpd in trail runners on very hilly, rocky terrain was just beating up my feet too much, bringing on the usual injuries like plantar fasciitis, Achilles tendonitis, etc. When I stay home more than a couple months, I start to get cabin fever and ready to go again on the trail. After doing AT section hikes since 2009, I've finally begun to realize it might be "easier" (probably wrong choice of words) to dedicate 5 months or so to doing a full AT thru hike. Section hiking has it's advantages as far as not being away from home as long, but physically, the issue becomes losing trail legs and getting out of shape after returning home from a section hike. It's more difficult for me to keep up a "base level" of hiking fitness here in flatlands of Florida, with the dang heat and humidity, hiking is only close to pleasant for maybe 4 months of the year. It becomes a big uphill challenge to get back in shape for each section hike. If I lived in Vermont or anywhere in New England, I would be very happy camper doing nothing but day hikes, or overnite hikes. You guys have hundreds and hundreds of miles of beautiful trails in every state worth checking out. Here in Florida we have nothing much but the boring Florida Trail, with it's pine trees, palmettos, oaks, swamps, and muggy heat and sand, sand, sand. The mental adjustment is the biggest challenge as the years creep up on us and realizing 20+ miles per day can bring on injuries quicker than when we were younger. Keep the faith!

[1234]

All I ever do is 10-12 mile days, I thinks its great! I still work and never get a chance for a hike over 10 days. So we take a bunch of 3 day week ends, base camp, cook wild apples in a dutch oven, feed the southbounders, day hike to the tops and watch the sun set and then hike back to base camp. We have 3 dutch ovens going at the same time sometimes. The AT misses most of the great spots! I love the waterfalls, and try to get to maybe 2 or 3 in one day. Hey drive the Blue ridge parkway and hike every waterfall! It is a great trip. I do not think all the good spots are 20 miles in away from access points. I do think "most" folks will only day hike in up to 5-6 miles but that does not mean that spots 10 15 miles in are any better. Not being able to hike 20-30 miles a day means now you can smell the roses, take cool pictures, explore the off trails. I think if you are doing 30 miles a day you are missing a lot. It is not a physical challenge to me, I want to do and see cool places. Just my 2 cent. Oh my buddy drives a camper bus, says I must get one I am missing all the fun! I think he is having a great time, but it is just not for me. Maybe there is a time when a bus would be fun, just not yet.

[bangorme]

My answer to this problem has been to hike by myself and at my own pace. Where, when I was young, it was all about miles, now I don't give a darn about how many miles I do in a day. When I'm tired (since I'm by myself), I can stop to rest whenever I feel like it... even every ten steps if it's steep enough. If I've had enough for a day, I just walk off the trail, pitch my tent, cook supper, and read until I fall asleep. Then, I get up whenever I feel like it and start anew. Giving up the things of youth takes some practice, but it's worth it.