'Hike your own hike': equipment and serious leisure along the Appalachian Trail

• Published in: Leisure studies Vol. 31; no. 4; pp. 465 - 486
• Main Authors: Littlefield, Jon, Siudzinski, Robert A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Colchester Routledge 01.10.2012; Taylor & Francis
• Subjects: community of practice; Consciousness; hikers; Knowledge; Leisure; Qualitative Methods; ready-to-hand; serious leisure; social learning; Sociology; Sociology of knowledge and sociology of culture; Sociology of leisure and mass culture; Leisure activity; Equipment; Qualitative study; Social Learning

We use qualitative methods to extend the understanding of serious leisure among hikers, specifically by examining the processes of acquiring and adapting equipment during an Appalachian Trail (AT) thru-hike. By studying the process of preparing for and embarking on this 2000-mile long, 4-6 month hik...