Recreation Reports
Human-Powered Outdoor Recreation On Public Lands
In America's west, national public lands (NPL) are home to over 76% of human-powered outdoor recreation, including hiking, mountain biking, backcountry skiing, paddling, and rock climbing. National public lands include national parks, national forests, national monuments and other federally owned public access lands. National public lands provide outstanding access to some of the most outstanding outdoor recreation experiences in America. They are the foundation of a thriving economic sector and a growing population of outdoor enthusiasts.
Recreation area is the footprint of America's recreation opportunities. It is represented by a quarter-mile safeguard around hiking, mountain biking and skiing trails, paddling runs, and rock climbing areas.
Western States Recreation Reports
Downloadable PDF reports by state:
Results are based on geospatial analyses conducted by the Outdoor Alliance in 2017. Recreation area represents a quarter-mile safeguard around hiking, mountain biking and skiing trails, paddling runs, and rock climbing areas. National public land was tabulated from the U.S. Geological Survey, Protected Areas Database of the United States. Human-powered recreation datasets were provided by Adventure Projects, American Whitewater, Trailforks, U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, and OpenStreetMap. State economic data were cited from the Outdoor Industry Association’s 2017 study, “The Outdoor Recreation Economy.”
Data, Methods, Definitions, and Resources (PDF 340k)