abstract: More than 200 hikers are rescued annually in the greater Phoenix area. This study examined the impact of hiking in hot (HOT), dry temperatures versus moderate (MOD) temperatures on dietary intake behaviors as well as markers of heat stress. Twelve recreational mountain hikers climbed “A” Mountain four consecutive times (4-miles) on a HOT day (WBGT=31.6 °C) and again on a MOD day (WBGT= 19.0 °C). Simulated food and fluid behavior allowed participants to bring what they normally would for a 4- mile hike and to consume both ad libitum. The following heat stress indicators (mean difference; p-value), were all significantly higher on the HOT hike compared to the MOD hike: average core temperature (0.6 °C; p=0.002), average rating of perceived exertion (2.6; p=0.005), sweat rate (0.54; p=0.01), and fluid consumption (753; p<0.001). On the HOT hike, 42% of the participants brought enough fluids to meet their individual calculated fluid needs, however less than 20% actually consumed enough to meet those needs. On the MOD hike, 56% of participants brought enough fluids to meet their needs, but only 33% actually consumed enough to meet them. Morning-after USG samples ≥1.020 indicating dehydration on an individual level showed 75% of hikers after the HOT hike and 67% after the MOD hike were unable to compensate for fluids lost during the previous day’s hike. Furthermore, participant food intake was low with only three hikers consuming food on the hot hike, an average of 33.2g of food. No food was consumed on the MOD hike. These results demonstrate that hikers did not consume enough fluids to meet their needs while hiking, especially in the heat. They also show heat stress negatively affected hiker’s physiological and performance measures. Future recommendations should address food and fluid consumption while hiking in the heat. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Nutrition 2020

In the 1960s and 1970s, Canadian music educator R. Murray Schafer developed the field of soundscape studies, later introducing the “soundwalk”: an empirical method for identifying a soundscape and its components through the activities of walking and close listening. Human activity in a soundscape, or a soundwalk, is known as anthropophony: a category of sounds produced by humans, including language, vocalizations, and musics. In this individual oral presentation, the primary researcher will share her experiences in creating a framework for her Master’s in Appalachian Studies Applied Project at East Tennessee State University. The soundwalk method will be adapted into a series of recorded “soundhikes.” During these hikes, the primary researcher and her participants will engage in a series of interviews in areas designated as state parks and national forests in the Upstate of South Carolina. These oral histories (with English-language translations, when applicable) will be submitted to the Archives of Appalachia, and will be used in the primary researcher’s ongoing research on Appalachian representation in the region’s protected spaces. As these protected spaces have reached nearly one hundred years of existence as “state parks” or “national forests”, the demographics of the people visiting them have changed drastically. The lenses of Critical Race Theory and Feminist Disability Theory will be used to explore these new demographic realties, and to advocate for resources benefitting those who have self-reported any of the following while attempting to enjoy Appalachian nature spaces: barriers to access, feelings of fear, or experiences of rejection. The ultimate goal of the oral history soundhike project, influenced by the principles of Public Sphere Theory, is to feature present-day voices which have not been historically included in Appalachian “nature narratives,” leading to increased representation in the field of Appalachian Studies. Though data collection has not yet begun, it is the hope of the primary researcher that this information will have a pragmatic application. Applicable portions of this project will be submitted to agencies, located in South Carolina’s Upstate region, which have indicated an interest in attracting more diverse stakeholders. The finished project will advocate for more diverse language and cultural resources and programming in protected nature spaces.

Over the past years, we have made countless explorations to promote urbanisation. The whole project begins with my interest in possibility of non-urbanized area. And desert as the largest account of untouched area on earth, it is an interest topic to explore how human activities will take place in a natural context rather than urban context. The whole project begins with my interest in possibility of non-urbanizsed area. And desert, as the largest account of untouched area on earth, is an interest topic to explore how human activities will take place in a natural context rather than urban context. I started with Burningman Festival in Black Rock city. It is temporary city of 7 days located in desert. It is often reported that upon leaving Burningman, participants feel possessed of a desire to make their year-round world feel like life during the festival. So I decided to set up something to make it a longer festival site. A hiking routine with several rest station heading to the camp site came into being. In desert scale, it is a simple line pointing at the camp centre. In people scale, it hybrids the nature pattern abstracted from desert Band the strong geometric pattern. The destination steps a little higher than other points, where people can enjoy the spectacular view

A great deal of previous sociological research has examined the social contours of subcultures, focusing either on highly transient subcultures (e.g., among youth) or, conversely, stable institutionalized subcultures (e.g., among professionals). More recent scholarship has examined how leisure subcultures are formed and sustained around a particular interest or activity (e.g., windsurfing). However, little attention has been paid to the role of recreational settings (i.e., specific geographical locales) in the formation of leisure subcultures. Using the Appalachian Trail as a case study, I aim to fill that gap by examining a long-distance hiking subculture. I use ethnographic data collected from long-distance hikers on the Appalachian Trail to carry out the study. My investigation is guided by a subcultural perspective which allows me to identify and understand the sociality and social practices of a long-distance hiking subculture. Consequently, long-distance hikers can be identified and understood through (1) a negative relation to work, (2) a negative or ambivalent relation to class, (3) an association with territory, (4) non-domestic forms of belonging, (5) a range of excessive attributes, and (6) a refusal of the banalities of ordinary life. My qualitative analysis of long-distance hikers’ accounts and interactions permits me to explore how subcultural ideologies and practices are combined with a socially significant place to forge powerful emotional bonds among long-distance hikers and strong attachments to the Appalachian Trail.

abstract: Trails perform an essential function in protected lands by routing visitors along planned, sustainable surfaces. However, when visitors deviate from official trails in sufficient numbers, it can lead to the creation of social trails. These visitor-created pathways are not sustainably designed and can severely degrade both the stability and appearance of protected areas. A multitude of recreation motivations among visitors and a lack of resources among land management agencies have made the mitigation and closure of social trails a perennial concern. A sustainable, economical strategy that does not require the continual diversion of staff is needed to address social trails. In this study, two techniques that stand out in the research literature for their efficacy and practicality were tested on a social trail closure in South Mountain Park, a high-use, urban-proximate mountain park in Phoenix, AZ. A research design with additive treatments utilizing the site management technique known as trail mitigation, sometimes referred to as brushing in the literature, followed by theory-grounded signage incorporating injunctive-proscriptive wording, an attribution message, and a reasoning message targeting visitor behavioral beliefs, norms, and control was applied and assessed using unobtrusive observation. Both treatments reduced observed off-trail hiking from 75.4% to 0%, though traces of footsteps and attempts to re-open the trail revealed the existence of unobserved “entrenched” users. With entrenched users attempting to reopen the trail, trail mitigation represented an effective but vulnerable approach while the signage represented a long-lasting “hardened” approach that provides an educational message, management’s stance on the closure, and which might put social pressure on the entrenched user(s). / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Community Resources and Development 2018

M.Sc. (Geography) / Maputoland is one of the few remaining wilderness areas along the South African coast on which to base a progressive tourist industry. The area between Dog Point and Sodwana Bay was selected as the study area, as the area calls for responsible development. The area lends itself to various nature-orientated activities and therefore the development of a hiking trail will be investigated. Compliance with the following two principles is necessary in order to ensure the success of a hiking route: (a) the environment must be protected and (b) the environment must satisfy the needs of a hiker. Both the principles mentioned are taken into account in the application of Hugo and Bewsher's (1993) comprehensive trail development model. It is for this reason that the model is applied to designate the most suitable location for a hiking corridor. In order to identify a hiking corridor the five planning phases of the comprehensive trail development model must be applied. Identification of primary parameters that in conjunction form ecological units: When vegetation and geomorphological units, which can be represented spatially, are laid over one another, new units known as ecological units, are formed. These units are placed in order to suitability and divided into functional planning zones...

Every summer solo-hikers roam the wilderness in northern Scandinavia; across mountains and rivers; they are in awe of the nature. This thesis explores the question: What do they seek out there? It uncovers their aspirations and experiences with a phenomenological research approach. Sixteen solo-hikers were interviewed in-situ (northern Scandinavia, June to August 2014) to gain immediate insights into the phenomenon. The analysis derived four major experiential themes from their narratives: the solo, the nature, the physical and the inner experience. Accordingly, the solo-hikers seek an individual mixture of experiences often linked to their personal life-paths. The study suggests that the solo-hike is both a journey of distance and closeness. The individuals seek (a perceived, not spatial) distance to common life-spaces and make sense of wilderness as a place that is away. However, they speak about the solo-hike as an experience of closeness to their inner selves. The thesis links to key concepts in human geography (such as place, identity) and central discussions in tourism studies (e.g. solo-travel, travel motivations). Ultimately, it also offers a thorough theoretical discussion of adopting phenomenology in human geography.

This core work is a mutual comparison approach, which relates to the internal character and motives of the three specific forms of travel: pilgrimage, wandering and hiking. They are presented in chronological order, with an emphasis on comparison, resources, development and continuity of individual approaches. Regarded as the basic motive of these three ways which one sets out of the home; the author considers the human need for change, a desire for knowledge and an escape from everyday life, which are presented in more detail. In addition, being discussed is the concept of looking at these forms of travel as a kind of ritual transition when a person away from their normal environment becomes an individual that is on the border, detached from his past and his future already changed thanks to the newly acquired experiences and expertise - a man who returns is never the same. Pilgrimage, wandering and hiking are presented as activities in which by their own way often enable an individual to abandon everyday life. The level and manner of this work are expressed via a culturally and historical contingent and subject to further transformation. The oldest and most important form of travel is pilgrimage, which is the starting point for the other two forms mentioned. Pilgrimage gradually provides a platform for...

Thesis (M.W.S.)--Memorial University of Newfoundland, 2005. / Bibliography: leaves 33-34.

Thesis (Ph.D.) - James Cook University, 2006. / Typescript (photocopy) Bibliography: leaves 347-371.