Trends in Recreation
In 2005-06, RCO interviewed more than 3,000 people during a year-long survey about outdoor recreation: What they did, where, and how often. The survey found that walking is the most popular form of recreation, and has been for more than ten years. The second most popular activity is “team-individual sports and physical activity,” which includes playground use and outdoor sports, from basketball to football.
List of Activities by Participant | ||
| 2005-06 Survey Results | ||
Activity |
Participation by Percent of 2005 Population (rounded) |
Estimated Number of People (rounded) |
Walking-hiking |
73% |
4,567,000 |
Team-individual sports, physical activity |
69% |
4,316,000 |
Nature activity (wildlife photography, bird watching, gardening) |
53% |
3,315,000 |
Picnicking |
46% |
2,877,000 |
Community center activities (classes, events) |
45% |
2,815,000 |
Water activities such as boating |
36% |
2,252,000 |
Sightseeing |
35% |
2,189,000 |
Bicycle riding (all kinds) |
30% |
1,876,000 |
ORV use (all kinds) |
18% |
1,126,000 |
Snow-ice activities |
17% |
1,063,000 |
Camping (tent, RV) |
17% |
1,063,000 |
Fishing |
15% |
938,000 |
Hunting-shooting |
7% |
437,000 |
Equestrian activities |
4% |
250,000 |
Air activities (hang gliding, bungee jumping, flying, etc) |
4% |
250,000 |
Top Ranking Activities | ||
| Participation Survey Results Using Average Month | ||
Rank |
Reported in 2002 |
Reported in 2005-06 |
1 |
Walking-hiking |
Walking-hiking |
2 |
Team-individual sports |
Team-individual sports |
3 |
Nature (photography-gardening) |
Nature (photography, gardening) |
4 |
Sightseeing |
Picnicking |
5 |
Bicycle riding |
Indoor activities (classes, events) |
6 |
Indoor |
Water activities |
7 |
Picnicking |
Sightseeing |
8 |
Water activities |
Bicycle riding |
9 |
Snow-ice activities |
ORV use |
10 |
Fishing |
Snow-ice activities |
11 |
Camping |
Camping |
12 |
ORV use |
Fishing |
13 |
Hunting-shooting |
Hunting-shooting |
14 |
Equestrian |
Equestrian activities |
15 |
Air activities |
Air activities |
- Report Summary
- Complete Report
- Cross-tabulations (all Microsoft Excel files)
Staff Analysis
Recreation reflects the diversity of our state’s people and landscape. Most recreation takes place in town, close to where people live, where there is growing demand for safe places to walk and ride bikes or simply play with the family. Parks serve as people’s “backyards” in high-density communities.
People also want to enjoy the outdoors away from town, making state-owned sites sometimes crowded. National forests and parks are popular destinations for front-country activity. Some forms of recreation that depend on the backcountry or undeveloped places are actually in decline; hunting participation has declined as a percent of population during the past 20 years, and visits to federal wilderness areas has declined in the past decade.
Looking ahead, demand for recreational opportunities will become more complex as the population grows and changes. Unfortunately, management resources are not growing and cannot be expected to keep up with the changes.
For more information, view the staff analysis PowerPoint.
