Episode 78: Adventure Has No Expiration Date with Beverly MacDowell
On Adventure Podcast with Josh Self
Release Date: 08/28/2026
Episode 79: Why Altitude Humbles Even Experienced Climbers with Karl Frank
On Adventure Podcast with Josh Self
What do you find out about yourself when the mountain sends you back down? In this episode of On Adventure Podcast, Josh talks with Karl Frank, a Colorado native, mountaineer, and President of A&I Wealth Management in Denver. Karl grew up hiking out the back door of his family's home at 7,000 feet, and he is now working his way through the Seven Summits. They discuss two very different trips up Kilimanjaro, a December summit of Aconcagua that most of the group did not finish, and a winter ascent of Mount Whitney where a single misstep by a teammate...
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Episode 78: Adventure Has No Expiration Date with Beverly MacDowell
On Adventure Podcast with Josh Self
Adventure Has No Expiration Date with Beverly McDowell What if some of your greatest adventures are still ahead of you? In this episode of On Adventure, Josh sits down with Beverly MacDowell, a retired educator, hiking guide, trail maintainer, and lifelong learner based in Asheville, North Carolina. She’s also the sister of actress Andie MacDowell - but Beverly has carved out an adventurous story entirely her own, much of it after age 50. Beverly shares how hiking became a source of joy, confidence, community, and purpose, from introducing women over 60 to backpacking to maintaining...
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On Adventure Podcast with Josh Self
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Episode 76: Summit Fever and Close Calls - Knowing When to Turn Back in the Mountains with Stefan Gruber
On Adventure Podcast with Josh Self
What happens when you build your work around the life you want to live? In this episode of On Adventure, Josh talks with Stefan Gruber, a climber, photographer, traveler, and customer success professional at Levitate. Stefan shares how remote work and his wife Sarah’s career as a travel nurse have helped them create a life centered on movement, creativity, and outdoor adventure. They discuss climbing, film photography, international travel, dangerous moments in the mountains, and the judgment required to turn around when conditions are not right. At the heart of the conversation is a...
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Episode 75: Hard Things Are Worth Doing with Justin Smith
On Adventure Podcast with Josh Self
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Episode 74: Carrying a Language Home with Gil Jackson
On Adventure Podcast with Josh Self
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Episode 73: Running is Life with Aaron Saft
On Adventure Podcast with Josh Self
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Episode 72: Risk in Every Form with Greg Winchester
On Adventure Podcast with Josh Self
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Episode 71: Solo Female Travel, Real Risk, and the Belonging We All Crave with Amanda Black
On Adventure Podcast with Josh Self
ON ADVENTURE PODCAST | EPISODE 71 Episode 71: Solo Female Travel, Real Risk, and the Belonging We All Crave with Amanda Black Episode Description What does it actually take to step on a plane alone, head somewhere most people would call risky, and come home a different woman? Amanda Black is the founder of the Solo Female Traveler Network, a community of more than half a million women that started as a small Facebook group during her expat years in Australia. Ten years and roughly thirty tours a year later, she leads women into places...
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Episode 70: Saying Yes to the Right Invitations with Colin Stroud
On Adventure Podcast with Josh Self
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Adventure Has No Expiration Date with Beverly McDowell
What if some of your greatest adventures are still ahead of you?
In this episode of On Adventure, Josh sits down with Beverly MacDowell, a retired educator, hiking guide, trail maintainer, and lifelong learner based in Asheville, North Carolina. She’s also the sister of actress Andie MacDowell - but Beverly has carved out an adventurous story entirely her own, much of it after age 50.
Beverly shares how hiking became a source of joy, confidence, community, and purpose, from introducing women over 60 to backpacking to maintaining sections of the Appalachian Trail. Along the way, she and Josh explore the beauty of Western North Carolina, the recovery following Hurricane Helene, the remarkable restoration of Max Patch, and why continuing to challenge ourselves physically and mentally becomes even more important as we age.
At the heart of the conversation is a simple reminder: you don't have to take on crazy risks to become an adventurer. And you certainly don't have to stop because you're getting older.
🥾 In This Episode
- 00:00 — Beverly's unexpected second career as a hiking guide
- 03:00 — Guiding visitors through Asheville and the Blue Ridge Mountains
- 05:00 — George Vanderbilt's lasting impact on Western North Carolina
- 09:00 — Helping women over 60 experience backpacking
- 13:00 — What first-time backpackers discover about themselves
- 14:00 — Favorite destinations: the Smokies, Mount Mitchell, and 6,000-foot peaks
- 17:00 — Hiking and tourism in Asheville after Hurricane Helene
- 19:00 — How Max Patch recovered from being “over-loved”
- 24:00 — Beverly's favorite places to take first-time visitors
- 30:00 — Why the mountains keep calling her back
- 33:00 — Discovering camping at 36—and raising outdoor kids
- 34:00 — Why it's never too late to start hiking
- 36:00 — Movement, balance, aging, and becoming more “antifragile”
- 39:00 — Finding your own challenge and growth zone
- 41:00 — Nature as meditation and an antidote to distraction
- 44:00 — What outdoor experiences teach the next generation
- 49:00 — Beverly's search-and-rescue training and continuing desire to learn
- 53:00 — The enduring lesson: adventure can begin at any age
- 54:00 — How to connect with Beverly and hike with her
🌲 Key Takeaways
It's not too late. Beverly didn't begin camping until her 30s, joined the Carolina Mountain Club in her 50s, began maintaining the Appalachian Trail at 59, and started search-and-rescue training at 65.
A little challenge is good for us. Hiking asks the body and brain to constantly adapt—from navigating rocks and roots to maintaining balance—and Beverly believes those challenges become especially valuable as we age.
Guidance can turn intimidation into independence. By providing equipment, knowledge, safety, and community, Beverly has helped women over 60 discover that backpacking isn't beyond their reach.
Nature restores more than the body. For Beverly, being outside is simultaneously exercise, meditation, education, and connection. As she puts it, getting outdoors is simply “a balm.”
Protecting wild places matters. From her trail-maintenance work at Max Patch to her love for Pisgah National Forest, Beverly's story is also a reminder that the places that give us so much need something from us in return.
💬 Memorable Moments
“The majority of everything I did was post-50.”
“It's a balm to get outside, to get your feet on the earth and walk.”
“A little challenge is good.”
“It makes you a completely badass grandmama.”
Connect with Beverly
Follow Bev MacDowell on Facebook for Western North Carolina hiking, wildflowers, mushrooms, and outdoor adventures.
You can also find Beverly and request a guided half-day, full-day, or backpacking experience through Blue Ridge Hiking Company.
Whether your next adventure is a multi-day backpacking trip or simply walking a trail you've never explored before, Beverly's message is worth carrying with you:
Start where you are. Keep moving. And don't assume your best adventures are behind you.