Alfredo Aliaga Burdio, 92, became the oldest person to cross the Grand Canyon rim to rim on foot when completing his trek in October 2023. (Guinness World Records)
A man is setting records at the age of 92 after conquering a nearly 24-mile hike at the Grand Canyon.
According to the Guinness World Records, Alfredo Aliaga Burdio completed his record-setting trek across the Grand Canyon on Oct. 15, 2023.
He reportedly hiked about 21 hours over two days to become the oldest person to hike the Grand Canyon rim to rim on foot.
After his wife passed away from ALS in 2006, Burdio said he decided to revisit the places where they had traveled together.
In October 2022, Burdio hiked the Grand Canyon with his son, and it was during this trip that he came up with the idea to attempt the record.
“I had read about the previous record holder, Mr. John Jepkema, whom I admired immensely,” Burdio said. “I knew that I was only a few months younger than Mr. Jepkema and thought that I had a great shot at setting a new record.”
After a delayed attempt due to weather, Burdio began training for what would be the hike of a lifetime last January. He said he began walking about 8 miles every day up until his record-breaking hike.
He started his journey at the North Rim and stopped to take a break about every hour.
“I was very tired after those first five hours,” he said. “But what surprised me is that after about a 15-minute break, some food, and electrolytes, I recovered and felt strong again to tackle the next seven hours.”
He says many people were hiking the Grand Canyon during his journey and they took the time to be kind to him.
“Truly the best thing was meeting all the people on the trail,” Burdio said.
The 92-year-old said every person was cheering him on and encouraging him.
He reportedly took 11 hours and 15 minutes to hike from the North Rim Trailhead down to Phantom Ranch and an additional 10 hours the next day from Phantom Ranch to the South Rim Trailhead.
Burdio said he hopes his journey will show people that doing what they love and never giving up on trying to achieve things is what matters.
He also said he would like to show people that it is never too late to try something.