Why mainly only caucasian backpackers?

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sparky
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Re: Why mainly only caucasian backpackers?

Post by sparky »

We might be mostly Caucasian, but we are ALL human :unibrow: Most of us anyway
Ska-T
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Re: Why mainly only caucasian backpackers?

Post by Ska-T »

Wandering Daisy wrote:I have run into more non-Caucasian backpackers on the JMT vs other trails.
I agree and put forth the theory that among the young backpackers in California, which includes a health number of Hispanics and Asians, that backpacking is one of their hobbies, but not yet their main hobby. As that demographic gets older I suspect there will be more hard core backpackers among them. Novice, occasional, social backpackers often favor the popular trails.

Mav, my daughter loves backpacking and we recently did part of the SHR (i.e., off trail). My son would participate more if he were not subject to AMS (from his mom's genetics), but he still occasional goes and has fun. They both did cross country routes including Hands-and-Knees Pass, Glacier Pass, and Lion Rock Pass when they were in elementary school. Maybe the LA Times wouldn't count them since they are "only" half Asian.

Perhaps you are too young, Mav, but in the late 60s through the 70s you may have bumped into me and my Af-Am girl friend backpacking in various areas from Desolation to Baja.
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gdurkee
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Re: Why mainly only caucasian backpackers?

Post by gdurkee »

Just thumbing through assorted threads (get me away from Facebook -- can't watch too many kitten videos!). I've long wondered about this and have no answer but a couple of observations. In the early 70s, we (ranger/NPS) thought that with a more open and inclusive society (yes, optimistic hippies!) more colorful people would take up backpacking. It didn't happen to any great extent. There's a sporadic flurry of native Japanese after a book and public documentary was done on the JMT (about 20 years ago). My wife and I are in both and it was the highlight of my career to have a guy from Japan stop on the JMT below Bullfrog and exclaim "Durkee san!" and then bow. Well, kinda turns a guy's head, it does. Also each August & September there's a fair number of Koreans from LA who go out in hiking clubs which, I understand, is hugely popular in Korea. I don't know if their US born kids are taking it up though. And in Sequoia Kings, there's been a huge influx of Latinos coming up to picnic on Saturday & Sunday in the campgrounds in winter while kids sled. Hundreds come into the park the, poof, by 5PM, they're gone. Very different type of use. I'd kind of expected those kids to grow up and start hiking. It may be too early but I'm not really seeing it. Which is all to say I'm kinda clueless.

PS: note the new avatar. Too many reports of babes swooning with the old one... .
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rlown
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Re: Why mainly only caucasian backpackers?

Post by rlown »

I've invited several non-Caucasians on trips. They just didn't want to go. This was even before Internet, cell phones and other electrical tethers. Even have enough gear for 2 people, other than boots.

The most odd thing i experienced was up Rafferty Crk. We were leaving from Evelyn, and two Japanese tourists were hiking up (met right where the upper valley opens up.) They asked "how far?" response: how far to where? They didn't know a lot of English and I don't know a lot of Japanese. Brightly dressed or under-dressed for late September. They wanted to go to Vogelsang. I responded 3 Kilometers out.

Now, why did the woman have on heels?? It was a tad bizarre.

PS: George, can you get a bigger hat for your Avatar? and also for you...

[youtube_vid]<iframe width="854" height="480" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8HVWitAW-Qg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>[/youtube_vid]
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gdurkee
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Re: Why mainly only caucasian backpackers?

Post by gdurkee »

"PS: George, can you get a bigger hat for your Avatar?"
All hat and no cattle. Or something like that... . That photo's from about 1973 and probably one of the last times I actually wore a flat hat.
OK, enough talk, back to kittens!
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Jimr
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Re: Why mainly only caucasian backpackers?

Post by Jimr »

Russ, it's about time you posted a youtube vid worth watching :unibrow:
If you don't know where you're going, then any path will get you there.
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rlown
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Re: Why mainly only caucasian backpackers?

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That was for George.
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Jimr
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Re: Why mainly only caucasian backpackers?

Post by Jimr »

So, I wasn't supposed to watch it? Damn, I love cute kitties \:D/
If you don't know where you're going, then any path will get you there.
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Re: Why mainly only caucasian backpackers?

Post by wildhiker »

While visiting my daughter last month in Washington D.C., we went west into Virginia and West Virginia to do some day hiking amidst the fall colors. We ran into a large group (about a dozen) of South Korean backpackers, young adults up to about age 60. A couple spoke excellent English and I talked to them a bit. Seems like they were US residents (immigrants? diplomats? H1-B visa? - I didn't ask), taking friends? relatives? from S. Korea on a weekend backpack trip and they did this quite a bit. Also some some local African-Americans day-hiking on another trail, but still, mostly Caucasians.
-Phil
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paul
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Re: Why mainly only caucasian backpackers?

Post by paul »

I think it would be very interesting toe see a survey of backpackers to find out where the average backpacker sits on the socioeconomic spectrum. My gut level guess is that we are on the whole mostly urban/suburban middle and upper middle class. That's who I meet out there, anyway. You can't be dirt poor - you wouldn't have the time, or the money for gear. But you don't have to be wealthy - basic gear is not tremendously expensive and once you have gear you don't have to spend a lot to take a trip, as long as you have a secure enough job that you get time off from work. But If I'm right about the socioeconomic status, then due to the fact that African-Americans are on the average lower on that scale than caucasians, that might explain part of it, Plus it seems like most of the backpackers I have known were introduced to the outdoors by their parents or even grandparents - so it's a generational thing, and since African- Americans were historically much worse off than they are today (on average), they have had less chance of that happening. And probably there are subtler cutural forces that I am not aware of.
As for Asians, I've seen a fair number of Asian backpackers, and even more day hikers. Hiking is very popular in Japan, and I believe in Korea as well. I wonder if the proportion of Asian backpackers to all backpackers is much off the ratio of Asians in the total US population? For African-Americans I would guess it definitely is.
Certainly seems like an interesting subject for some sociologists to study. Backpackers in general - and by that I mean folks who do it year after year, rather than people who have gone once or twice but don't really catch the bug - are a fairly small slice of the population I would think. It certainly does not appeal to everyone.
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