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Las Vegas groups look to diversify and widen outdoor opportunities

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Donovan Childress (left) and Quentin Savwoir
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The past few weeks have brought welcome, cooler temperatures to Las Vegas. And the change of seasons also marks a significant shift for outdoor enthusiasts ready to hike, climb and camp at Red Rock Canyon, Mount Charleston and beyond.

Donovan Childress, a senior at Arbor View High School, created Black People Hike Las Vegas in 2020, hoping to break down the stereotypes around Black people engaging with natural spaces or outdoor pursuits. “Black People Hike Las Vegas is a group that tries to inspire African Americans in Las Vegas to embrace the beauty, adventure and peace of nature of the American wilderness,” he explains. “We also want to erase the stereotype that hiking and other outdoor activities aren’t made for people of color.”

Childress, an avid outdoorsman, says the group has been to Red Rock Canyon and Utah’s Zion National Park. With the weather cooling down, the group plans to return to Red Rock to visit Ice Box Canyon, a 2.2-mile narrow and low-light trail that leads hikers through seasonal waterfalls and loose boulders.

During the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, Childress says, he was restless and felt unproductive while staying indoors. Black People Hike Las Vegas combined his search for an activity to abate that boredom with his desire to make a difference in the outdoors community.

“When I went to Zion National Park or Grand Canyon National Park, I really didn’t see people that looked like me,” he says. “If I tell Black kids at school, they look at me crazy, like, ‘Oh, hiking’s for white people.’ So I try to erase that stereotype.”

Red Rock Canyon requires timed reservations from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. for those interested in driving its scenic route or hiking its varied trails. The canyon actually opens at 6 a.m. and closes at 7 p.m. —reservations aren’t needed before 8 or after 5—and prices vary per type of entry. Those interested can book tickets as far as 30 days in advance.

John Asselin, public affairs specialist for the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), says the reservation system helps alleviate crowds at the canyon, as more visitors come to the canyon once the summer’s heat recedes. In the fall and spring, the busiest times of the year for Red Rock, he says, approximately 2,300 people come to the scenic drive on weekdays, with close to 4,000 on the weekends.

“It’s getting busier and busier every year,” he says. “Even though the weather’s cooled off, it’s super dry out here. It’s the desert, so bring plenty of water. Don’t hike alone. Bring someone with you if you can.”

Another barrier for some seeking environmental ventures is its cost. Hiking, camping or backpacking gear can be expensive if bought new and depending on brand, type and quantity of items. Other travel expenses such as location of stay, transportation and entry to the parks can drive up the cost of a camper’s trip.

Some provisions make camping more affordable, including staying on public BLM land, typically first-come, first-serve and free to stay for up to 14 days.

April Contreras, a third-year graduate student at the UNLV and president of the university’s Mountain Club, says that when she founded the club in February 2020, she wanted to keep costs low to increase engagement among historically excluded groups like students of color.

“I started exploring the outdoors a lot as a graduate student and realized that there were a lot of barriers to access in the outdoors for women, women of color and the diverse community that UNLV and the Las Vegas community in general serves,” she says. “So that kind of really stood out as an opportunity to start the UNLV Mountain Club to give people the opportunity to learn skills to navigate the outdoors and to grow and feel empowered outside.”

Though a UNLV organization, the Mountain Club is open to any interested residents, Contreras says. Dues are $25 per year and include access to weekly trips, led by Contreras; Dustin Hikes, faculty adviser and professor in the Department of Psychology; or other experienced UNLV student hikers.

“One thing that we talk about a lot is the triumph of the human spirit,” Hikes says. “You can see this … when people are hiking, to take that next step when they’re climbing, to get past the difficult part.”

Jaylen Morris, a senior accounting major at UNLV and member of the Mountain Club and Rock Climbing Club, says being part of the groups has helped him grow from a novice to thriving hiker. After transferring to UNLV as a junior, Morris sought clubs to meet new people and make friends, a successful move that took him to Sedona, Arizona, where the Mountain Club hiked around natural hot springs and camped out for the weekend.

He says he had run into gatekeepers in the past in other sports, “but especially the Mountain Club and Rock Climbing Club, they’re really awesome and willing to teach new people, and it makes it a really good time.”

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