Lost hiker rescued after encountering tree on ADK trail

[rbi99]

I have never been able to fly up mountains. I am definitely the tortoise to the hare, always have been. Like I mentioned in a previous post above, I know what I can and cannot do. I am coming up in September with my oldest grandson and we are backpacking into the Colden Lake area for a few days. Will climb Algonquin for the fourth time and the following day plan to climb Mt Marshall for the first time. Right off the bat it is not an overly challenging agenda for most people, especially since we are doing it over several days, but that is how I have always done things up here. This will not be easy for me, and I will slow my grandson down no doubt, but he knows that as we hiked together up here last September. Even at that, if either or both mountains become too much for me, I will most definitely turn back. I leave three extra hours at least for any time frame I figure I need when climbing. Bottom line, if something goes wrong, it won't be because of my age.

[FlyFishingandBeer]

Hey, if you like climbing mountains, its better to climb slowly and at your own pace than to sit around lamenting about how you no longer try to climb mountains, right? Turning a "simple" hike into an all-day meander just because you can is some of the most fun you can have in the peaks, in my opinion.

[SeaLevel]

What a wonderful opportunity to hike with your grandson. Never apologize for your pace (or age), if a hiking partner can't respect that, perhaps they shouldn't be your partner!. (That said, similar pacing in the winter is more critical than other seasons.) As long as you are realistic about your pace, you can then adjust your hiking expectations accordingly and it sounds like you factor that in. My reality is I want to be off the mountain before sundown, which translates into I may have to start a hike earlier to do so. I don't mind hiking in or hiking out with a headlamp, I just don't want to be descending in the dark. Even with that, conditions can still slow you down so you need a realistic turn around time. I have always equated my pace to being that of a "local" train and marvel as the "express" trains fly by! Hope you have a great time with your grandson.