Funny. About ten or twelve years ago I was visiting my parents in Santa Fe. I was heading out for my first hike on the then-new Dale Ball Trails. My mother was horrified. I was courting death and dismemberment, at least, she said. It just wasn't safe for women to hike alone.
I went for my hike. Every other hiker I met was a solo female. No males. No one hiking with a partner or group.
The imaginations of nonhikers are quite at variance with reality.