On turning 69
Thursday, July 29, 2021 at 08:45AM 
At Philmont Ranch participating in age-inappropriate activities.
Today I turn 69 years old. Somehow that sounds dreadfully old. But I just don't feel all that ancient.
Whether due to willfulness or dumb luck, my physical and mental decline into abject senility and immobility seems to be fairly slow.
- I was very proud and happy to have performed well in the Philmont backpacking trip earlier this month when my 15-year-old grandson along with 7 other Boy Scouts and 2 other adults hiked over 55 miles of mountainous terrain in rain, hail, mud, stream crossings, and rocks. I even managed to get up from my sleeping bag each morning without too much difficulty. And remarkably, I came back injury-free. Did I mention we carried pretty good sized packs and lived on energy bars?
- Next week I am flying to Europe for a long-delayed bicycle trip along the Danube River. The 8 daily routes are not long (around 25 miles each) and hopefully flat. I'm staying on a river cruiseship. I don't know what COVID restrictions will be in place, but I'll have my vaccination card at the ready and sort of take things as they come. Leaving a couple days early just in case I need testing or something. Haven't been biking much this summer so this may be a challenge.
- This October, my friend Heidi and I are signed up for a Road Scholar Hiking trip to Arcadia National Park in Maine. Maine is one of the 4 states I've never visited. We are also planning a trip to the Galapagos and Amazon rainforest this winter. I'll stay in Ecuador for a few extra weeks to avoid the worst of Minnesota's winter and get in some high altitude hiking.
- Heidi and I completed the Hiking Club Challenge this June, having hiked all the identified trails in 68 Minnesota State Parks. It took 2 years. We got badges.
- I just finished writing a 372 page StoryWorth book I titled Memories, Lessons, and a Few Tall Tales. The book was written one short chapter a week over the past year. I am blogging still, albeit less frequently, and more and more to amuse myself and less to inform others.
- I still volunteer regularly with a local nonprofit giving rides and shopping for groceries for seniors. I'm service project chair for a local Rotary Club. I participate in outdoor recreation and bicycling groups.
- And I still read constantly. I'm about half done with a book called Stupid Things I Won't Do When I Get Old: a Highly Judgmental, Unapologetically Honest Accounting of All the Things Our Elders Are Doing Wrong by Steven Petrow. It should be a manadatory study for anyone over the age of 60.
Find the old guy. Hiking group at Ciudad Perdida, Columbia in 2015.
Way back in 2015, when I was just a young pup of 63, I asked myself whether I would be smarter playing with people more my own age. As the picture above shows, the rest of my fellow hikers were not quite at my chronological level. It was a tough, damn hike.
Yet the more I think about it, the less foolish such adventures seem. Yes, I could have a stroke or heart attack or be eaten by less-than-discriminating bears. But I could also, much more painfully, die of boredome and enui right here at home in my recliner.
Whether physical, mental, or mission-driven, challenges, I believe they slow the trip to the crematorium. Or at least make it more interesting.
Researching a hike to El Mirador...
Reader Comments (7)
Happy birthday Doug! Keep on doing what you're doing.
Kelly
Happy Birthday! Hope to see another post in 30 years...
Happy birthday sir! Such an inspiration.
Thanks for all the kind words and wishes!
Doug
Happy belated birthday, Doug and thanks for the inspiration. While I probably won’t be doing the hiking and biking trips you are planning, I’m also working hard to avoid the boredom and ennui that can seep into retirement life. Looking forward to reading some stories from your adventures.
It’s fun to read what you’ve been up to, Doug, and nice to know you’re doing well.
If you find yourself in Mankato with a few hours to spare it would be fun to get the original (I almost wrote “old”) media department together.
Happy travels!
Cindy
Hi Cindy,
Good to hear from you. Just back last night from a bike/boat trip in Europe. The pandemic didn't make it easy.
I was able to connect with a lot of the techs at Aaron Daby's funeral. Sad occasion, but good to see folks.
Yes, it would be fun to reconnect with the Mankato media folks. Brady moved to Atlanta so I don't have much reason to visit Mankato anymore.
Take care,
Doug