Characteristics of wilderness users in outdoor recreation assessments

Wilderness use is often subsumed under outdoor recreation participation in large-scale assessments. Participation monitoring has indicated, however, that wilderness use has been increasing faster than outdoor recreation use in general. In a sample of Forest Service wilderness and nonwildemess users during the summer of 1985, detailed expenditure, activity, and travel profiles were developed. The purpose of this analysis is to explore the possibility of differentiating between the characteristics of wilderness and general outdoor recreation users on the basis of trip characteristics, expenditure patterns, and such demographic factors as age, income, education, sex, employment status, and social group composition.