I’ve seen a lot of discussion about how Americans are uncomfortably friendly to the point of saying hi to strangers on the street, but this isn’t in all US cities. But on hiking trails in wilderness areas, people ALWAYS say hi. I think part of it is if you see one other person in the middle of nowhere, it would be more awkward to not acknowledge their presence but also it’s a safety thing. Good to know someone has seen you and acknowledged you if you end up getting lost or hurt.
So in your country is this common when you’re on a nature trail?
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We don’t say hi to strangers generally, but when hiking it’s the polite thing to do.
I haven’t been walking nature trails much (besides the ones around my village), but most people seem to just nod to each other. You don’t really talk to random strangers in Denmark, so it makes sense – you acknowledge their presence, but don’t interact. You don’t see people just randomly greeting others on the street in cities, but you can still find people doing it in smaller, rural communities (such as my village)
It is the polite and common thing to do, even a nod of acknowledgement is acceptable if you aren’t the ‘morning/afternoon/nice day for it’ sort
Very common here,I always do it and most people say ‘Hi’ back!
It depends on where you are and how frequent other hikers are there. If you‘re 2 km from the parking lot and would sound like a broken record if you greeted everyone, you don’t. If you meet people less frequently, you generally greet them. And especially in lesser travelled areas of the Alps, you might also stop for a while and talk about the way ahead.
I noticed something similar when hiking in Finland, however, the threshold for what constitutes „frequently“ seems to be way lower there.
It’s mandatory when you get above a certain height. At least where I grew up, not sure about other parts of the country. But only when hiking etc, not in the city.
Yes. In any urban environment you’d be viewed as a psycho if greeting strangers but when hiking all of that goes out the window and saying hi or giving a nod to people you pass is the norm.
The exception may be if the trail is very crowded, like if you’re passing people literally constantly. The more remote the hiking is the more important the greeting is.
In Catalonia it’s hiking etiquette to greet everyone you meet while hiking. It’s so widespread that whenever you find someone who doesn’t greet back they are a foreigner 90% or more of the time and their percieved lack of courtesy is discussed for the next several minutes.
We have a saying ‘Am Berg sind wir alle per Du’ which means that there is no formally adressing other people. I’d say it’s as common as it gets without being mandatory.
It’s very common on mountain trails – though these days some of those trails are so busy that people don’t bother because then your throat would get parched just from saying “good day” every two minutes.
It’s normal to salute strangers you meet on the road walking anywhere that isn’t a built up urban area in ireland, including hiking! 🙂
It’s pretty much mandatory to acknowledge the other person, or at least us locals do it (southern English tourists occasionally awkwardly ignore you!)
Very common. If you passed someone on a hill walk or hike and didn’t at least give them a nod it would be considered very rude. Tbh it would be kinda rude not to say hello to anyone you pass walking here, unless you are in a big town or city. We like saying hello to strangers in Ireland, at least in rural areas.
In the city/town/village no-one says “hi”. But on a hike, I’ve got the feeling that it’s basically mandatory.
On a trail, you are kind of crazy if you do not say hello to people you pass. On a street, you are kind of crazy if you do say hello to people you pass.
Very common when hiking actually, maybe cause you’re all doing the same thing
Germans don’t say hi to strangers but when there is some semi-justifiable reason of a social connection, like they live in your building or they are hiking the same trail as you then people always say hello. It’s like a rule
I don’t know about hiking but it’s definitely the polite and expected thing to do when you are cross-country skiing in Lapland. If you ski in cities, nobody says hi.
Very common in the Netherlands. In the village where I live it’s even very comon to say high to people on the street, like it happens in 20-50% of the cases depending on the moment.
I’m from the Midwest. It is the norm to say Hi to someone or at least nod at them when they are in close proximity to you. I don’t know any other way.
When hiking in nature and it’s not too busy, most people definitely say ‘hi’ or at least do a gesture with their head instead.
Yes, it’s normal to say hi to people when hiking. It just feels wrong not to.
I also think it’s a safety thing, I noticed that I remember people better if I talked to them, even if it’s just a word. So if someone get lost I can tell when and where I saw them. Of course doesn’t work if it’s really busy, but I still “register” a few people.
It also helps if some people don’t know the area, they are more likely to ask for directions and advice if you already “made contact”.
I think today I saw maybe 30 people, and only 2 of them didn’t reply at all…
It is a common behaviour in France. You say hi to people on hiking trails.
In Finland its mandatory to avoid other hikers. Those you may see on hiking tracks are rookies and real pro hikers you dont see because they are hiding from you. Usually they spot you before you them and they able to get off the track and lay down. Most pro hikers just dont use tracks at all and they walk own paths.
When hiking, you’re a weirdo if you don’t. Greeting other hikers is the number 1 rule of Tur^TM
Very. I almost always greet people on the street (when not in a busy crowd) and during hiking I continue this
Good rule of thumb – that cty folk seem to forget – that when you live in an area where coming across other people is relatively rare, then saying hi to everyone you meet, doesn’t take much time.
Being polite never hurts, so people do it.
Regardless if its a village, or out hiking.
When hiking in spain its a 50-50. We just say “hola” or “buenos dias/Buenas tardes” depending on the time of the day, and thats’s it.
Some say hi, others dont. But we dont talk.
Obviously if an emergency happens and someone calls for help, we attend and call 112.
Very common (well, vouching for the North of England, Ireland, and Wales, but I suspect its the same everywhere else around these parts) to say a quick “Hi!” and give a big cheesy grin. It’s not a walk in the sticks without it!
Yes, we do say hi to everybody while hiking and in villages / small towns.
It’s a way to get you noticed by the people who you meet. In the mountain many bad things can happen.
Last year I traveled around Lake Baikal. And yes, I always said hello to the people I met. But it was very rare. And waved to train drivers.
Some might say it’s just the polite thing to do. I disagree. It’s the only right thing to do. If you don’t say “hi” or “hello” while hiking, you are a monster.
I might’ve not said hi to some older people a couple times because of my fear of speaking to people and I hate myself for it. But to be fair, they are just as bad for not saying hi to me.
Oh yeah and it’s always “hi”, not a formal “good day”. Apparently it’s because when it started, it was all young people, so they greeted each other as equals. And then they just kept doing it. But I don’t know how true that is.
Depends on where you are. If you are hiking in a very popular woodland/hiking spot you might not greet all people. There are woods around where I live, where you essentially trip over somebody else the moment you don’t look in front of you – not that bad but you get the idea. Some hiking paths essentially have become an extension of the town, so people don’t greet each other all the time. Also you need to focus so you ain’t run down by one of the many mountain bikers that zip down the hill.
In more remote areas where you will only meet another person every now and then, you normally greet them – it’s actually a bit rude not to, you might even chat a bit before going your way again. Also the more rural the area is the more likely it is that people will just greet you on the street and that extends to the woodland tracks as well.
I’m a hiker and I can tell you that it’s customary to greet other people on the trail.
American here: ALWAYS. Not saying hi to someone you pass up while hiking is creepy. Makes you feel like they’re an ax-murderer or something.
City: do not make eye contact.
Town: greet people you know.
Trails just outside town: say hi but keep walking, especially if it’s a pensioner (you might not know them, but they’ll know you or one of your relatives). You skip one step and you’re stuck in a 20 minute long conversation about family trees and recently dead people.
Marked trails: always say hi. The person going up would often ask how long it takes to reach the refuge. The person coming down would severely underestimate the time.
While hiking it’s a rule to always greet. There are some inofficial rules that the younger person greets first and when you meet a group you always greet the first and last person because if you meet 40 people it would be exausting too greet them all.
Generally speaking yes, we do greet each other while hiking. On the other hand it depends on how the trail is crowded – if it’s a popular one and you pass somebody all the time, you just get tired of it. The wilder/mountanious the trail is, the more common is to say hi.
Very common. We greet all people during hiking, even Germans