A thread at the Backpacking.net forums wonders why so many backpackers tend to be predominantly white folks (and predominantly white guys, at that).

GoBlog brought this up a few weeks back in a post skewering the lily-whiteness of Outside magazine and its Patagonia-clad readers.

I don’t see minority groups being excluded from the backcountry, and I don’t see how their cultural preferences against camping out in the woods are hurting them socially or economically, so I’m not investing a anxiety over the issue of diversity on the trails. Would it be better if more people of varying ethnicities appreciated a vigorous walk in the country? Sure, if they pick up after themselves.


I just thought of a great Far Side cartoon: Picture two bears in a campsite, with an overline that says “Diversity in the deep woods.” One bear is saying to the other: “You know, people really are all the same on the inside.”