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I lived the majority of my life in the Deep South. The most common /out/ activities in that part of the country are either hunting or fishing. Well into adulthood it was rare to have met someone who had never done either. Hiking, however, wasn’t nearly as popular.
I mean there are trails in Alabama, sure. Every knows the 330+ mile Pinhoti Trail. And if you hike in Louisiana you’re going to see some wildlife; it’s guaranteed. But backpacking as someone’s main focus for recreation during their free time is very rare in that part of the country.
A few years ago I moved to Portland for work (InB4 junkie liberal hobos; I know). In the PNW, you can’t throw a rock without hitting a hiking trail. I lived in a city of ~300k people, and the nearest REI was 7 hours away. Now if I want a pair of wool leggings I can say “let’s not go to that REI, let’s go to the good REI.” Really I could forgo them altogether and go to the Icebreaker outlet. The point is there are enough people hiking in this area to support numerous brick and mortar stores.
As such, “hiker” has become somewhat of an identity in this part of the country. It’s similar to “surfer” or “body builder.” Those labels are universally understood, and in this part of the country, the image of a hiker (if not the label) carries a similar meaning.
That’s why people LARP as hikers/outdoorsmen. It’s a West Coast influence where an identity has sprung up around a particular activity that isn’t as prevalent in the rest of the country. Maybe it’s people looking for an identity; who knows? But I’d only seen this attitude online until moving here. And they’re everywhere out here. You’d think with all of the people claiming to hike that the trails would be packed, but just a few miles from the trail head there isn’t anyone around. It’s very odd. I think it’s why so many people drive Subaru’s in Portland; they want to appear outdoorsy.
