115! A Year for the Ages

Larry and his son Kelly Russell celebrate his milestone 100th hike of the season

Winter weather and the seasonal closing of LeConte Lodge didn't slow down 80-year-old Larry Russell. He day-hiked the Alum Cave Bluff Trail eight times after Thanksgiving, and finished with his 115th climb of the year on Dec. 20.

Larry's 2023 total is the most ever by an octogenarian and the busiest season by anyone since Ed Wright made 130 climbs at age 72 in 1997. Wright set the all-time record  of 230 in 1991.

A retired policeman living in Sevierville, Larry made his 80th hike on Sept. 14. This made him the eldest hiker to "hike his age," a concept borrowed from golf--when your annual total of hikes outnumbers the candles on your birthday cake. The last park guest to do so was Ron Valentine, who made 76 climbs in 2009 as he turned 76. Watch Larry's story on WBIR-TV.

Some younger members of the LeConte Lodge crew--and some llamas--have hiked their age during the course of their seasons. For example, lodge manager John Northrup made 70 ascents in 2023 at age 37.

Here at LeContest, we are grateful to Larry for serving as our correspondent to help keep our online logbook updated. After each trip to the lodge, he emails pages from the lodge logbook. If you appreciate the updates to this page, tell Larry thanks!

The "Hiked Your Age Club" is a product of our research at LeContest.com. We have lifetime hiking records for Wright, Valentine, Dinwiddie, and Margaret Stevenson--documenting almost 5,000 hikes. We welcome any additional records. Margaret barely missed the "Hike Your Age" club, with 78 hikes the year she turned 79.

We've flipped the calendar on the website. If you have Le Conte hikes to post, fill out the form on the website or email LeConteLog@gmail.com.

Most Le Conte ascents in a year

Hiker	Ascents	Year	Birthday this year
Ed Wright	230	1991	66
Ed Wright	130	1997	72
Larry Russell	115	2023	80
Ron Valentine	113	*1990s	60+
Ed Wright	111	1998	73
Ron Valentine	109	*1990s	60+
Ed Wright	108	1993	68
Ed Wright	104	1994	69
Ed Wright	103	1995	70
Paul Dinwiddie	102	1991	76
Ron Valentine	101	2002	69
Ed Wright	90	1992	67
Ed Wright	90	1995	70
Paul Dinwiddie	88	1990	75
Ron Valentine	83	2003	70
Ron Valentine	80	2006	73
Ron Valentine	79	2000	67
Paul Dinwiddie	78	1984	69
Margaret Stevenson	78	1991	79
Ron Valentine	77	2004	71
Paul Dinwiddie	76	1998	73
Ron Valentine	76	2009	76
John Northrup	70	2023	37

*Valentine had years of 113 and 109 hikes during the 1990s, but his records were lost in a fire and the exact years are uncertain.