You know the seasons are wheeling around because of all the hiking stories that are popping up online. Over the past week or so we’ve been reminded of the joys of hiking, and the toys of hiking, and the health benefits, including this simple and stunning fact, from a study by a team at the University of Pittsburgh: for older adults, walking a mile a day appears to decrease by about 50 percent the chances of developing Alzheimer’s disease or dementia.
Yes, oldster, you who is terrified by the notion of dementia: you can cut your risk in half with about 20 minutes of pleasant daily activity. Even better, the study found that walking more than a mile doesn’t give you any additional benefit, so you aren’t obliged to make that three-day trek along the Chilkoot Trail or do 12 days on the Pacific Crest or even go an extra half-hour around the mall.
And a 2007 U.K. study has discovered that being in contact with “a type of friendly bacteria found in soil may affect the brain in a similar way to antidepressants.” This sounds like a recommendation for gardening or ditch-digging more than hiking, but somehow every piece of clothing taken on any trek finishes up filthy, so there is obviously some human-soil interaction going on there.
That said, health benefits are the bonus of hiking, the spiff if you will. The main benefit is the part you know. We will spare you any attempt to describe it. (We will also forego attempts to tell you why sex or grilled salmon are good. Or a cold beer on a warm night on a sailboat anchored under a clear sky.)
Happily, advances in gear suggest that it’s possible to trim the weight of your pack so it gets lighter as you get older. Or you can maintain pack weight while you add creature comforts as you lose your tolerance for sleeping on that hard, mood-elevating dirt. Nice piece here on an over-60 hiker who has dropped his pack weight by three to seven pounds while still holding on to a comfortable sleeping pad, a double-walled tent and hiking poles.
Press releases on new ultralight gear are also popping up every day. They are the crocuses of the approaching hiking season. The latest to catch our eye was the Arc’teryx Alpha SL Hybrid Jacket; it uses a standard tried-and-true Gore-Tex fabric, reinforced with tougher Gore-Tex fabric in high-wear areas (like the places where your pack straps rub). At 12.9 ounces and a $339 price, it promises to lighten your pack and your wallet.
All the possibilities for getting new, super lightweight, super-compressible gear would be another spiff, probably less compelling than forestalling dementia but still nice. Eyes on the prize, though, kids. The big benefit is out there, right now, and it only requires you and your two feet.
