{"id":44285,"date":"2026-01-31T13:51:11","date_gmt":"2026-01-31T13:51:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/usa\/i-took-my-63-year-old-retired-mother-on-a-bucket-list-trip-i-learned-youre-never-too-old-for-big-adventures\/"},"modified":"2026-01-31T13:51:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-31T13:51:11","slug":"i-took-my-63-year-old-retired-mother-on-a-bucket-list-trip-i-learned-youre-never-too-old-for-big-adventures","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/usa\/i-took-my-63-year-old-retired-mother-on-a-bucket-list-trip-i-learned-youre-never-too-old-for-big-adventures\/","title":{"rendered":"I took my 63-year-old retired mother on a bucket-list trip. I learned you&#8217;re never too old for big adventures."},"content":{"rendered":"<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/6978de14a645d11881880c67?format=jpeg\" alt=\"Author, her mom, and tour guide in canyon taking selfie\"\/><figcaption>I was a little nervous about taking my mom, who is in her 60s, on an adventure-packed trip with lots of physical activity, but I&#039;m so glad I did it. <\/p>\n<p>Emily Pennington<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>I brought my 63-year-old retired mom on an adventure-packed trip to Utah.<\/li>\n<li>Together, we hiked, rappelled down cliffs, and tried a night-sky photography experience.<\/li>\n<li>Limiting ourselves to one big activity a day and staying in a central location made the trip better.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Even though we live over 1,000 miles apart, my mom and I have always been close.<\/p>\n<p>As the single mother to an only child (me), she went out of her way throughout my childhood to take me on adventures of all sorts. <\/p>\n<p>Before I was 18, we had already road-tripped to Colorado, visited beaches in Florida, and spent numerous Christmases with her family in Sweden.<\/p>\n<p>My mom is, hands-down, the reason I&#039;ve become such a fearless international traveler and wilderness backpacker in my 30s. Of course, I know my time with her isn&#039;t unlimited, which is why I recently invited her to join me on a trip to Moab, Utah, this past November.<\/p>\n<p>Though I was, admittedly, a little nervous to take my retired, 63-year-old mother on a wilderness-focused trip in a remote desert town, the endeavor was a huge success \u2014 and I learned that you&#039;re never too old to plan a bucket-list adventure. <\/p>\n<p>Here&#039;s how I pulled it off.<\/p>\n<h2>I planned us just one big activity per day<\/h2>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/6978ddfbe1ba468a96aac41c?format=jpeg\" alt=\"Woman standing in Bow and Arrow Canyon\"\/><figcaption>Mom in Bow and Arrow Canyon.<\/p>\n<p>Emily Pennington<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Though I&#039;m a 38-year-old frequent traveler who loves to load up my days with two or more excursions, plus meals, I simplified my plans for this trip.<\/p>\n<p>I kept our itinerary more relaxed so that we had plenty of time to prepare for and decompress from each activity. This ended up being a key reason for the success of our autumn adventure in Moab.<\/p>\n<p>On day one, we went out for a guided canyoneering tour that involved a few miles of off-trail hiking and rappelling down steep cliff faces. <\/p>\n<p>Afterward, we were both excited to relax back at our hotel and do some shopping in Moab&#039;s adorable downtown before heading to an incredible dinner and cocktails at Birdy&#039;s Finer Diner \u2014 we needed the sustenance after that trek.<\/p>\n<p>For our second full day in Moab, I planned for a late start and a leisurely breakfast in town at Moab Garage Co. After, we embarked on a scenic drive up to Canyonlands National Park. <\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/6978de6ba645d11881880c7a?format=jpeg\" alt=\"Author&#039;s mom smiling at Canyonlands National Park\"\/><figcaption>Canyonlands National Park<\/p>\n<p>Emily Pennington<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Instead of tiring ourselves out on strenuous day hikes, we spent an afternoon strolling to scenic viewpoints to conserve our energy because, later that day, I&#039;d booked us an evening night-sky photography experience with Moab Dark Sky Tours. <\/p>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/6978de62e1ba468a96aac437?format=jpeg\" alt=\"Arches National Park at night with visible stars above rock formations\"\/><figcaption>Arches National Park at night<\/p>\n<p>Emily Pennington<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>I never would have guessed it, but going on mellow night hikes with my mom and a camera in tow became an instant favorite travel memory.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>We stayed in a centrally-located hotel<\/strong><\/h2>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/6978de52e1ba468a96aac432?format=jpeg\" alt=\"Author and her mom nad Bow and Arrow canyon\"\/><figcaption>My mom and I got to see so many incredible sights on our Utah trip. <\/p>\n<p>Emily Pennington<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>I&#039;ve been to every US national park, and I love adventure travel, but I&#039;ve seen the good, the bad, and the ugly when it comes to weird lodging in rural towns.<\/p>\n<p>To avoid any hotel snafus, my mother and I booked a room at well-reviewed hotel in the heart of downtown Moab.<\/p>\n<p>This simple hotel choice meant that getting to and from Arches National Park was a breeze, and heading back to the room for a shower and rest before dinner meant just a quick drive. <\/p>\n<p>It also made patronizing unique local businesses in town, like Sabaku Sushi, easier than just grabbing basic snacks at the hotel. Both my mom and I were able to kick back and unwind, rather than driving an hour each way, just to get to one restaurant or activity.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Though we pushed ourselves out of our comfort zones, we did do selectively<\/strong><\/h2>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/6978dda9a645d11881880c46?format=jpeg\" alt=\"Author&#039;s mom rappelling at Bow and Arrow Canyon\"\/><figcaption>My mom and I rappelled down steep cliffs together. <\/p>\n<p>Emily Pennington<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>I knew it was risky to take my retired mother on a high-flying canyoneering expedition outside of Moab that would involve rappelling off 110-foot vertical cliff faces. <\/p>\n<p>However, I did loads of research and chose an experienced guiding company that I was confident could make both of us feel safe and supported.<\/p>\n<p>On the days when we adventured at our own pace, I researched easy walks on apps like AllTrails so we didn&#039;t lose steam too early.<\/p>\n<p>All in all, night hiking with my mom in Arches and canyoneering deep in the Moab backcountry were incredible bonding experiences that I know I&#039;ll cherish forever.<\/p>\n<p>Even though it took some extra planning and moxie to pull it off, I&#039;m glad that I went on an adventure vacation with my mom while she&#039;s still spry and active enough to try new, exciting activities together. <\/p>\n<p>Though our trip had its challenges, it was a heck of a lot more memorable than watching movies on the couch.<\/p>\n<p>Read the original article on Business Insider<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I was a little nervous about taking my mom, who is in her 60s, on an adventure-packed trip with lots of physical activity, but I&#039;m so glad I did it. Emily Pennington I brought my 63-year-old retired mom on an adventure-packed trip to Utah. Together, we hiked, rappelled down cliffs, and tried a night-sky photography [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-44285","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-usa"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44285","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=44285"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44285\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=44285"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=44285"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=44285"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}