Why do they try to scare us?

[Bear Cables]

Are any of you girls out there tired of people telling you how dangerous it is for women to be on the trail! I am so tired of people trying to make me scared. Even my supportive husband has started this. " I don't thinks it's a good idea for two women to be on the trail..." Would like it better if it were three of us or two women and a man.

[Nean]

Fear rules the world and most people CAN relate to it.

Fear of the unknown is in the top 10 of fears!

[FFTorched]

The truth is there are dangers along the trails but our fear mongering media will turn an single event into something larger and overblown.

I have remarked that since I moved to Italy I have never felt threatened or weary of walking down certain streets or being in the woods after dark, maybe it's just the Italian people or it's the fact that I can't understand the evening news.

[Spokes]

Are any of you girls out there tired of people telling you how dangerous it is for women to be on the trail! I am so tired of people trying to make me scared. ................

I agree......... seems like way too many other woman pose the same question on WB too.

[modiyooch]

I truly believe my husband's biggest fear was that something would happen to me and he would have to raise the three kids by himself.
Now, they are grown.
My husband has been hiking with me and supporting me the last several years while in NH and ME. It's not fear of man, but respect of the elements. I have had an extremely tough time with NH. I am very grateful for his support.

[LIhikers]

Bear Cables,

Don't worry about it. Even us guys get the same thing. Often the first question is "Your going to bring a gun, right?" When I say no then they usually start in on the "what if" situations.
They just don't know that it's probably safer on the trail than in town and can't relate to the situation. And of course when something is unkown many people have an imediate fear of it, too bad.
Don't let other people's fears ruin your hiking is about the only advice I can give you.

[kanga]

i understand your frustration, i have heard the same thing countless times. however...
if you are comfortable yourself with being alone in the woods, then just don't worry about it. your confidence will make them more comfortable with the issues and you'll stop hearing so much about it.

[Megan1125]

I agree! My fiance used to give me a hard time about doing day hikes alone, but he isn't into hiking at all. I told him he could either come with me or get off my back. My best friend and I are going on a 4 night trip this weekend and I've noticed that people calm down when I tell them we're taking a dog. You could consider getting a trail dog.

[IceAge]

Sorry, I'm not female and I have always resisted posting in here before, but I know where you are coming from. Most people do not want others to do things that are outside their own safety zone, and what is worse (IMO) is that they seem to get an odd pleasure if you fail!

I recently tried getting back into playing rugby after a 10 year break, and was very surprised to see how many people it seemed were hoping that I would fail, and how happy they were when I broke my leg in my first game back.

People are weird.

[double d]

Sorry, I'm not female and I have always resisted posting in here before, but I know where you are coming from. Most people do not want others to do things that are outside their own safety zone, and what is worse (IMO) is that they seem to get an odd pleasure if you fail!

I recently tried getting back into playing rugby after a 10 year break, and was very surprised to see how many people it seemed were hoping that I would fail, and how happy they were when I broke my leg in my first game back.

People are weird.

Great post IceAge, very true! I can't stand it when people react to something different (and often difficult, such as hiking the AT or playing rugby) as if the world will end. For the WB women, continue hiking, as every 24 hours, our own deaths get one day closer, so enjoy yourself, use common sense at all times, have good gear and a great attitude, and it all works out.

[ShoelessWanderer]

Are any of you girls out there tired of people telling you how dangerous it is for women to be on the trail! I am so tired of people trying to make me scared. Even my supportive husband has started this. " I don't thinks it's a good idea for two women to be on the trail..." Would like it better if it were three of us or two women and a man.

Actually, ironically enough, my mother was sending me news stories of deaths on the AT. She gets annoyed that I hike by myself. But, ironically, here "proof" just proved my point. The AT is safe!!

Some fun statistics:

Nine homicides have been documented on the trail since the first reported homicide in Georgia in 1974. (That's only 9 in 36 years! Much better statistic than our town has. Especially if you consider 3 million people hike on the AT every year. So 9 deaths for 108 million people. That's pretty damn good, I think!)

Half of the victims in the homicides were men.

Only one of them were hiking by themselves, the rest had hiking partners with them.

[tiptoe]

I just tell people "All the crazies are at the mall" and move on to another topic.

[Ladytrekker]

Are any of you girls out there tired of people telling you how dangerous it is for women to be on the trail! I am so tired of people trying to make me scared. Even my supportive husband has started this. " I don't thinks it's a good idea for two women to be on the trail..." Would like it better if it were three of us or two women and a man.

Tell your husband that you are at more risk in a Walmart parking lot than you are on the trail.

[Nean]

Actually, ironically enough, my mother was sending me news stories of deaths on the AT. She gets annoyed that I hike by myself. But, ironically, here "proof" just proved my point. The AT is safe!!

Some fun statistics:

Nine homicides have been documented on the trail since the first reported homicide in Georgia in 1974. (That's only 9 in 36 years! Much better statistic than our town has. Especially if you consider 3 million people hike on the AT every year. So 9 deaths for 108 million people. That's pretty damn good, I think!)

I believe 2 of those were not even on OR hiking the AT. Couple of gals doing a circut hike in SNP- yet the press made them AT hikers.

[Mountain Wildman]

Bear Cables and Ladies,
Please forgive my intrusion, I usually skim past the Females forum because I am not Female, Your Title caught my eye and I felt compelled to respond, I have not read any of the replys so I may state what someone else has.
I think it may stem from ancient instinctive responses to protect women, Most men don't realize how strong women really are.
Is it dangerous for a woman or two or more to be on a trail?, No more than for men, The world is a predominantly dangerous place but we still have to step out and be careful and live life, What kind of life would it be if we dwelled on the potential hazards of life. It always bothers me when someone posts a reply in any of these forums stating that the trail is completely safe and there is nothing to worry about, The trail may be mostly safe, as safe as anywhere else, But not completely safe, We all have to not be complacent, but careful and aware. So, Please forgive us, We just care and don't want to see you get hurt, One of God's greatest gifts and most amazing creations is women, You are all very precious and we would be lost without you. Anyway, No need to respond to my post, I will not intrude back in to see it.
Oh, And put any fears aside and go out on the trail and live, Just be cautious, The same advice I give anyone, Men included.

[kanga]

this kind of post isn't an intrusion, mw, but a welcome response in the women's forum. thank you for a kind and uplifting explanation.

[ShoelessWanderer]

I believe 2 of those were not even on OR hiking the AT. Couple of gals doing a circut hike in SNP- yet the press made them AT hikers.

Yeah they have a tendency to do that. Like the two people killed in VA last year, that they tried to pawn off on the AT. They weren't even hikers. They were college kids parked by the road.

Just use common sense while hiking. If you feel uncomfortable, move on. Trust your gut. And if really in doubt, carry pepper spray in your pocket.

I've been hiking by myself since I was 16, have never had a problem.

[John B]

I think it's to maintain or foster patterns of domination, subordination, and dependency. If a woman can walk from Georgia to Maine, or for that matter from Amicalola to Neels, without a guy hovering around and telling her what to do and when to do it, then she can probably do lots of other things (all things) that she might have previously assumed were beyond her capabilities.

Most of the guys I know who always tell their wives or girlfriends to "BE CAREFUL!" and "It's NOT SAFE!" are themselves highly insecure and afraid. And by convincing their wives/girlfriends that it's not safe without a man at their side, it not only replicates patterns of domination/subordination, but also helps to cover and legitmate their own fears.

Or to cut through the psychobabble, put simply, if a guy can convince a woman that it's truly dangerous "out there," then maybe she won't realize that he's a freaking weanie.

That's my .02.

[ShoelessWanderer]

I think it's to maintain or foster patterns of domination, subordination, and dependency. If a woman can walk from Georgia to Maine, or for that matter from Amicalola to Neels, without a guy hovering around and telling her what to do and when to do it, then she can probably do lots of other things (all things) that she might have previously assumed were beyond her capabilities.

Most of the guys I know who always tell their wives or girlfriends to "BE CAREFUL!" and "It's NOT SAFE!" are themselves highly insecure and afraid. And by convincing their wives/girlfriends that it's not safe without a man at their side, it not only replicates patterns of domination/subordination, but also helps to cover and legitmate their own fears.

Or to cut through the psychobabble, put simply, if a guy can convince a woman that it's truly dangerous "out there," then maybe she won't realize that he's a freaking weanie.

That's my .02.

Interesting perspective. Can see your points. Sadly, as a culture we have a tendency to do that to women. It's not even men specifically, I know lots of women who think I'm crazy when they find out I hike by myself. The awful double standard of a woman needing a man is so ingrained in our society that women don't even realize they're pushing it on other women, too.

[Lemni Skate]

You guys are all taking this too personally. You tell a person that you're going to thru hike. They immediately will project themselves into this situation and then they'll ask you about anything they are scared of for THEMSELVES. They are projecting their own fears onto you. Just calmly explain why you're not overly concerned about said fear. My biggest response is always (since I teach statistics), "Statistically, I'm a lot safer out there than at home."

I am not suggesting you leave your common sense at home, but I would be a lot less worried about even my 12 year old daughter hiking on the trail alone than I'd be about her almost anywhere else doing almost anything else alone (no worries, yet; my daughter is a scaredy-cat and won't do anything without dear old dad or mom).