I know the argument that age is a state of mind and everything, but I'm wondering a few things from you folks here at quietjourney. What is the oldest you have heard of someone putting themselves through the rigors of solo wilderness canoe tripping, and if you don't mind sharing, how old are you solo trippers, and how long do you plan on soloing?

I'm closer to 65 than 64.  My last solo trip was a 10-day trip to Woodland Caribou Provincial Park.  The solo drive to/from Texas was the hardest part of the trip.  (I also did a 15 day trip to Quetico where I was accompanied by another solo paddler.)

When do I plan to quit?  Shortly after I arrive on the other side of the dirt! (I'm planning to leave skid marks right up to the edge of my coffin.)

dd

12 yrs ago I watched a solo float in out of the whitecaps off off Bailey bay.  As the craft got to quiet water near Burke portge, guy pops up out of bilge.  He was 84, and told us he was ready to die up there.  Was headed to Agnes and out.  Had all his stuff in a homemade 100 lb. flour gunnysack straped over his shoulder.  He thought it was easier to ride the bilge as he had a hard time balancing the waves.  Said his wife had come up regular till she died in her early 80's.

There are at least three questions more important than "how old are you?" when it comes to soloing...or wilderness tripping in general.  In no particular order they are:

What kind of shape are you in mentally and physically?

How heavily are you packed?

How aggressive/easy is your chosen route?  Does it match the answers to the first 2 questions?

If you can get to the right answer on the first 3 questions then I think the age question becomes irrelevant.

A few years back Tim and I saw a soloist on the route between Joyce and Kash, which aint exactly for the faint of heart.  He appeared to be in his mid-70's and was completely unfazed by the rugged terrain of the portages.  He had his stuff in smaller packs that he was able to easily handle and he was in great shape.  Being retired, he was in no hurry, either.  Meanwhile Tim and I were staggering under our usual ginormous packs stuffed to the gills...with still more crap carabinered to the straps.  As usual, our travel days were super-aggressive in order to get the absolute maximum out of our 10-day vacation.  I made a mental note at that time that maybe we might want to change our style a bit as we age. 

As I get older, I'm discovering wisdom makes an excellent substitute for brute force.

My Dad was 85 on his last trip with us.  We all paddle our own solo kayaks.  He did just fine but on the last few years of traveling together I was the one to carry both the kayaks and make the extra trip across the portage for the balance of the gear.  There were also a few times I ended up towing him against strong winds that were too tiring.  His problem more than fatigue was that his kayak was very light, he himself was under 160 pounds by then, and he packed the bare minimum.  So against the wind he had no ballast and got blown back more than the rest of us.  He still paddles his kayak at 94 but no longer stays overnight out in the woods.

The last few years I have been going on 10 day trips with two 80 year old women who paddle their own boats.  They don't like portaging so we pick a route on one of the bigger lakes or a route which only takes one or two short portages to get somewhere else.  Last year son Dan and a friend of his also were along and they carried the ladies boats and most of their gear across the portages for them (Big Knife from Carp to Knife).

I think the physicality is the big issue.  I have "younger" lady friends in their late 50's and early 60's who would like to come along but because of cantankerous backs or weak wrists they can't do the work or sleep on the ground.  I am fortunate at almost 61 to have been built to a sturdy model and not to have any joint pain or stiffness to aggravate the camping.