Don't be thru-hiking; start Uhiking^sm

Abstract

Our National Scenic Trails help to protect wilderness and rural culture, while at the same time providing benefits to outdoor recreationists. Thru-hiking is an outdoor recreational pursuit that involves hiking "through" the entire length of a National Scenic Trail. A support network exists for hopeful sojourners desiring to thru-hike that captivates their interest, offers incentives, establishes a fraternity, and assists in the planning and implementation of a thru-hike. This has led to thousands of hikers congregating at the same end of a National Scenic Trail at around the same time, out of which only a few complete the journey. The majority of these sojourners drop out, but until they do both natural and cultural resources suffer from overuse and abuse. We need an alternative to thru-hiking which will promote local greenways and trails as a training ground prior to utilizing National Scenic Trails. T.R.A.I.L., Inc. promotes the concept of Uhiking^sm as an alternative to thru-hiking. Uhiking^sm would help take the pressure off National Scenic Trails, promote stewardship through increased user interaction with local greenways and trails, and provide a wilderness journey designed to particularly meet the needs of the sojourner. We call for the establishment of a support network for Uhiking^sm with much of the same elements of a thru-hiking support network.

Parent Publication

• Proceedings of the 2000 Northeastern Recreation Research Symposium

Citation

Sinclair, Kirk D. 2001. Don''t be thru-hiking; start Uhiking^sm. In: Kyle, Gerard, comp., ed. 2001. Proceedings of the 2000 Northeastern Recreation Research Symposium. Gen. Tech. Rep. NE-276. Newtown Square, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northeastern Research Station. 256-259