Old thread, but can't resist.

I'd cheerfully carry ALL her gear if my wife could hike with me.

My daughter, on the other hand can very easily walk my legs off while carrying a pack double or triple the weight of mine. Until this year she led a forest fire team that specialized in high-altitude initial assaults.

As for the sort of incidents this thread started with, I have to laugh. I thru-hiked the AT the year I turned 70. You should have seen the youngsters scramble when I came up behind them. Not that I'm fast at all. Part of their reaction was that they knew that.

best, jcp