I will be 68 in the spring. I am not in any shape to manhandle a
boat or even an inflatable pontoon anymore and I am young to get
real bored real quick being confined to the bank.
With that thought in mind I want to hear about physical problems I
might encounter in a tube. It seems like a really relaxing, comfortable
way to fish calm water close to shore. Any comment or opinions are
appreciated.

I am 68 with bad knees but I have absolutely no problem with a float tube, I use the Fish Cat 4 Deluxe. It is the most relaxing type of fishing I have done. People see me out on the lakes fly fishing and they regularly tell me how relaxed I look and ask me if I have ever fallen asleep in the tube. I buy $20 fins from Academy or Walmart and stay on the water for up to 8 hours in a day. I get exercise constantly moving my legs and casting, but it never tires me.

That's what I wanted to hear. I have a number of health problems to cotend with. Spent Nov and Dec in the hospital and now working on back problems.
My daughter moved me up near Greenville. I am ten minutes from Tawakoni and thirty minutes from Lake Fork. Not being able to be on the water is driving
me nuts. I am retired now and have nothinh to do but go see a bunch of doctors
and ride around the lakes looking for bank spots and waiting for warmer
weather.
The float tube sounds like an answer.

At Fork you could fish the creeks such as Little Mustang, Mustang, Williams Creek, etc. My favorite lakes are the 10-100 acre lakes that you can find around most towns. The best ones are the ones where a boat cannot be launched, but a float tube or kayak can be. They are usually great little fishing lakes.

I'm 66 with a bad back and can confirm what AnthonyT has posted above on relaxing in a tube. Though I walk 2 miles most days for exercise and am quite busy, I still manage to go out in my tube or toon an average of once a week year round. I use the lightest tubes/toons possible modified for comfort and include back straps to get to my launch points on the Guadalupe river.

In my experience the best tubes for back comfort are those that come with or can be modified to inflatable seats and inflatable back rests. Three that I know about are the super fat cat, fish cat 4 delux the Creek Company 420 series (only ultra light comes with bladder seat) which are pictured at "customers also viewed" http://www.amazon.com/Outcast-Super-Fat-Cat-LCS/dp/B002HP8UBC/ref=pd_sim_sbs_sg_5 Both the pressure and seat angle can be adjusted for a custom comfort on these tubes.

I modified the CC ultra light by substituting a thicker 2nd bottom bladder for the original thinner back bladder and that gives me better lumbar support. http://creekcompany.com/product.php?productid=16305&cat=249

Porta

That price is a whole lot more than I will have to spend. I am looking at a
couple in the $99 to $119 range at Bass Pro. I still have lots of time to decide.

If you live close to Tawakoni I would suggest you fish under two mile bridge during the fall and summer. It's a great place to fish with a tube.


Reggie

There's nothing wrong with the cheaper tubes. They are smaller and lighter than the larger, more expensive ones, but they work just fine and are quite comfortable. You just sit lower in the water and don't have as much storage space. I have one I use sometimes for small creeks.

A float tube is the best thing going for your back. Just take it easy the first few trips, and work up from there.