Forever Climbing

Three times a week in Los Angeles, Dr. Art Ulene climbs stairs. How many? Around 800 steps each time, an effort comparable to climbing Skellig Michael. That would be difficult for anyone. The remarkable thing is that Art is 89 years old. More remarkable still, he plans to climb Mount Kilimanjaro on July 13, just after his 90th birthday. If he reaches Uhuru Peak, he will become the oldest person ever to officially summit the mountain.

Mount Kilimanjaro rises 5,895 metres above sea level. It is not a technical climb, but that does not mean it is easy. The weather changes. The air grows thinner as you climb higher. You walk from morning until evening each day. It is estimated that 40 percent of those who attempt Kilimanjaro fail to reach the summit.

Art knows all about that. He has been there before.

He reached the summit in 2011 and again in 2013. In 2022, he made another attempt, but altitude sickness stopped him at 5,200 metres. In 2023, another attempt ended before it even began because he needed a hip replacement.

After something like that, most of us would not even consider trying again. For Art, however, it was simply another challenge to overcome.

As soon as he recovered, Art began training. He changed his plan and chose a longer, slower route. That would give his body more time to adapt to the altitude.

You might be surprised to learn that Art did not grow up as a mountain walker. He did not really begin until he was 74 years old. His wife, Priscilla, joined him on his hikes. Together they walked mountains in South America and made the journey to Everest Base Camp in Nepal.

We are often told that we are no longer capable of doing things like this as we grow older. Art shows clearly that this is not true.

And Art is not the only example, either.

In Griffith Park in Los Angeles, to choose just one place, stories like this have been unfolding for many years. Here are a few examples.

A Brazilian immigrant named Dante Orgolini was 60 years old when he began carrying water and seedlings up the dry slopes of Mount Hollywood in 1964. Day after day, he walked the same dusty trail. Over time, his garden grew on the barren mountainside overlooking the city. Other people were inspired and began helping Dante. Before long, benches and picnic tables appeared there. It became known as Dante’s View.

After Dante died in 1978, his friend Charlie Turner continued the work until he himself was 88 years old. Then Charlie’s friend Tom LaBonge took over the care of the site. Different lives, the same act every day.

Carry water. Care for the trail. Come back tomorrow.

Eventually, in 2015, Dante’s View received official recognition from the City of Los Angeles as a historic-cultural monument. Today, the Los Angeles Department of Parks and Rec is responsible for its upkeep.

On another trail in Griffith Park, another local hero emerged, a man named Pete Teti. A veteran of the Second World War, an artist, and a former art teacher in Los Angeles, he did not take up serious hiking until he was 79 years old. By the age of 100, he was still leading challenging walks near Griffith Observatory, stopping now and then on a bench to play tunes on his harmonica for passing walkers and their dogs.

His advice was simple:

Keep moving.

Stay curious.

Learn new things.

Walk up the hill often.

And what about Alfredo Aliaga Burdio, a Spanish immigrant? At the age of 92, he completed a 24-mile rim-to-rim crossing of the Grand Canyon and earned a Guinness World Record.

None of them found a secret fountain of youth.

Dante carried water up a dry hillside.

Pete Teti laced up his hiking boots and headed for the hill.

Alfredo Aliaga Burdio walked across the Grand Canyon.

Art Ulene climbs stairs with his eyes fixed on Kilimanjaro.

Although the details differ, the same pattern appears in every case: never give up.

Day after day. Year after year.

That is what stands out. Persistence. Dedication.

There is no denying that age leaves its mark. Knees hurt. Lungs burn. The body weakens. Some days the altitude feels overwhelming.

But these people did not allow age to write the whole story for them. They trained. They came back after setbacks. They kept going and overcame every challenge that came their way.

That is why Art Ulene’s Kilimanjaro attempt is so interesting. The obstacles changed the plan, but they did not change the goal.

With every flight of stairs he climbs, Kilimanjaro comes one step closer.

His philosophy is very simple:

“Live your life according to your potential, not according to your age.”

At almost 90 years of age, Art has earned the right to say it.