In the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, a backcountry or backwater is a geographical area that is
remote,
undeveloped
A developing country is a sovereign state with a lesser developed industrial base and a lower Human Development Index (HDI) relative to other countries. However, this definition is not universally agreed upon. There is also no clear agreem ...
,
isolated, or
difficult to access.
Terminology
Backcountry and wilderness within United States national parks
The
National Park Service
The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...
(NPS) generally uses the term "backcountry" to refer to "primitive, undeveloped portions of parks". Developments within backcountry areas are generally limited to trails, unpaved roads, and administrative facilities associated with dispersed recreational use. Dispersed recreational use is the most prevalent human use in backcountry areas, although research activities may also occur.
The NPS defines wilderness within US national parks as any "backcountry areas which have been specifically designated as part of the National Wilderness Preservation System or any other area that has been determined to possess the characteristics of wilderness as defined by Section 2(c) of the Wilderness Act".
Section 2(c) states in part that wilderness:
Wilderness lands within US national parks are a subset of all backcountry lands. Wilderness and backcountry lands also exist outside of US national parks on public lands managed by the US Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and the US Fish and Wildlife Service.
Use of the term "backcountry" in New Zealand
In
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
, "backcountry" often refers to land that is not accessible by public access. For example, it is common for a farmer to have some remote parts of their land left in
scrubland
Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominance (ecology), dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, Herbaceous plant, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or ...
or forest. This is often adjacent to other areas of backcountry which are yet to be developed or protected from development. Trampers and other explorers sometimes need to get farmers' permission to access parts of the
national parks of New Zealand
The national parks of New Zealand are protected natural areas administered by the Department of Conservation (DOC). The first national parks established in the country were all focused on mountain scenery. Since the 1980s the focus has been ...
or other natural phenomena, if they intend to pass over backcountry. Hunters can ask for permission from farmers to hunt in their backcountry.
Hazards
The backcountry contains many hazards including rough terrain, life-threatening weather,
avalanche
An avalanche is a rapid flow of snow down a slope, such as a hill or mountain.
Avalanches can be set off spontaneously, by such factors as increased precipitation or snowpack weakening, or by external means such as humans, animals, and earth ...
s, and wild animals. Tragic accidents and dramatic backcountry rescues of stranded hikers, climbers, or skiers are a staple of news reporting.
Some jurisdictions have discussed placing limits on human access to the backcountry during times of particular danger.
See also
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Backcountry skiing
Backcountry skiing ( US), also called off-piste (Europe), alpine touring, or out-of-area, is skiing in the backcountry on unmarked or unpatrolled areas either inside or outside a ski resort's boundaries. This contrasts with alpine skiing, which i ...
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Backcountry snowboarding
Backcountry snowboarding is snowboarding in a sparsely inhabited rural region over ungroomed and unmarked slopes or pistes in the backcountry, frequently amongst trees (" glade boarding"), usually in pursuit of fresh fallen snow, known as powder. ...
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Backcountry.com
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Backcountry hut
A wilderness hut, bothy, backcountry hut, or backcountry shelter is a free, primitive mountain hut for temporary accommodation, usually located in wilderness areas, national parks and along backpacking (wilderness), backpacking and hiking route ...
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Badlands
Badlands are a type of dry terrain where softer sedimentary rocks and clay-rich soils have been extensively eroded."Badlands" in ''Chambers's Encyclopædia''. London: George Newnes, 1961, Vol. 2, p. 47. They are characterized by steep slopes, m ...
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Bushland
In Australia, bushland is a blanket term for land which supports remnant vegetation or land which is disturbed but still retains a predominance of the original floristics and structure.
Human survival in bushland has a whole mythology evolving ...
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Countryside
In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, ...
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Desert
A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...
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Outback
The Outback is a remote, vast, sparsely populated area of Australia. The Outback is more remote than the bush. While often envisaged as being arid, the Outback regions extend from the northern to southern Australian coastlines and encompass a n ...
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Potability of backcountry water
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Wilderness
Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally re ...
References
{{Reflist, 2
Wilderness areas
Geography terminology