More than 1,300 people signed up for the Hillsborough County Hiking Spree 2022 within the first three days of open registration, putting it on pace with the record-setting 2021 spree.
The Hiking Spree is a free virtual event that commits participants to complete at least eight of 26 designated hikes between Nov. 1 and March 31 each year. The 2021 event drew 5,500 hikers with 2,000 furry hiking partners.
“We love seeing people sign up with their dogs,” said Chris Kiddy, Environmental Outreach Coordinator for Hillsborough County. “We get cards from the pets all the time, showing them completing their hikes. We get tons of them, and we love it.”
Two years ago, Kiddy, himself visited the county’s Pet Resource Center to adopt a dog so he, too, would have a hiking buddy. Turns out his pit bull mix does not like to hike, he said, but has found a forever home, nevertheless.
Many, though, do take their dogs hiking. So, in addition to the hikers who get who complete the spree receiving a small prize such as a hiking stick medallion, their dogs receive a bandana.
“We gave out hundreds of bandanas last time,” Kiddy said.
Hiking has become the most popular outdoor activity in the United States.
The hobby exploded in 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic swept the nation, keeping people socially distanced. They hit the trails for exercise and to simply get out of the house.
According to an analysis conducted by RunRepeat.com, the number of hikes logged in 2020 was up 171.4% compared to 2019. The number of individual hikers increased 134.7% compared to 2019.
Even the number of hikes logged went up by 52.1% in 2020 compared to the total 2016-2019 span.
Those figures do not include runners going more than 5 miles per hour.
Remember, that most gyms closed during the first wave of the pandemic, so many of these hikers were using the trails as a way to get some exercise, according to the analysis.
Social media might also play a role in the hiking spike, according to a survey conducted by Outside Magazine. There is a greater awareness of outdoor spaces. With that, has come an urge to explore more, to see it in person.
That is the idea behind the Hillsborough County Hiking Spree, to get people to visit parks or conservation areas they might not otherwise experience.
Most have heard about the overwhelming number of families headed to national parks around the country and many of those families are hiking. That means hiking has become much more of a mainstream event.
The local spree brings that closer to home.
While the number of hikers in the U.S. has risen annually since 2006, the most significant jump occurred in 2015. But hiking has always been around.
The most influential of historic environmental activists were hikers, including John Muir, Edward Abbey and Henry David Thoreau. Hiking became popular with more awareness after the 1950s.
So, is anyone surprised the phenomenon is growing right in Hillsborough County?
More than 2,000 of those who registered for the 2021 hiking spree completed it, Kiddy said. “I don’t have a final number, but it was our biggest completion yet. It was exponentially larger than in past years. We were overwhelmed by the amount of people who completed it.”
Lettuce Lake Park in Tampa remains one of the most popular for hiking, with its 1.25-mile concrete trail. Carrollwood Village, Kiddy said, is also quite popular, with a fitness trail and a lake. “It kind of blows you away. It’s got everything you want in a park.”
A few new parks have been added to the list of 26 hikes for 2022, including Northdale Park, Boyette Springs and the Bertha ad Tony Saladino Park. Two new locations partnering with the county this year are Hillsborough River State Park and the Manatee Viewing Center, which has a trail and an observation tower overlooking mangroves and a tidal creek.
“One of the questions we get a lot is about a brochure,” Kiddy said. “We don’t have a brochure, but we have a printable list of all the hike locations. Everybody really likes having that trail list, so we made it so you can print it and make notes on it.”
To sign up for the Hiking Spree, register on the county website. The site also gives directions on how participants can submit their completed hikes.
