This article is Part 1 of a blog series called We Belong Everywhere: Queer Community & Resilience in the Outdoors. Read Part 2 & 3!
The Value of Queer-Only Outdoor Spaces: Stories from OUTdoors Idaho
Why have a queer-only space? For the past year and a half, this question has been asked of me as I’ve managed our Chapter’s OUTdoors Idaho program, a shared identity space where LGBTQIA+ folks (including questioning and closeted folks) can connect, build queer community, and explore Idaho’s outdoors together. I’ve been asked the same questions over a dozen times: “Why LGBTQ+-only?” “Doesn’t this policy create an exclusionary environment?” “What good does it do to have an LGBTQ+ affirming space without allies?” The reasons for keeping our program LGBTQ+-only are vast, and I’ve found that the best people to explain them to you are the participants of OUTdoors Idaho themselves.
Fostering physical & emotional safety in Idaho’s outdoors
“Feeling safe in the outdoors is really important to me,” shared Kelly Richmond (she/her), Idaho Sierra Club Board Member, Treasurer, and volunteer. She loves hiking in Boise’s Foothills and getting outside often with her wife, friends, and family. However, Kelly explained, “I have definitely struggled being queer in the outdoors, in Idaho specifically. I have felt unsafe at times, I’ve been chased, I’ve heard horror stories of other people and their experience[s].”
Kelly is not alone; because of the real potential for anti-LGBTQ+ hate and harm, many queer folks don’t feel physically safe getting outdoors by themselves, or even in small groups—especially in more rural, remote areas of Idaho. In OUTdoors Idaho, however, Kelly feels more comfortable in Idaho’s natural spaces, surrounded by a large group of queer folks who she knows support her for who she is. “With a community, it feels more safe.”
Carina DuHadway (she/her), Sierra Club volunteer and Kelly's wife, explained that it wasn’t always possible for her to be out in public with other queer folks. “When I think about queer spaces—at least, when I was first coming out—it was always associated with dark, dank bars, dance clubs. So, to feel like there’s other spaces—that we’re making other spaces—that are actually really healthy and in the light of day, I think it’s really important. We’re hopefully moving into a different phase of our time, [where] we can claim spaces out in public.”
Many participants value OUTdoors Idaho not only for protecting their physical safety, but also their emotional safety. Free of heteronormativity and cisnormativity, OUTdoors Idaho is a unique space where many queer folks can feel at ease being completely themselves.
“I'm relatively early into my realization of being a queer person,” explained Jeff Watkins (he/they), Idaho Sierra Club member and volunteer. “I never had the safety or comfort of exploring that. It was always there, but for some reason, I never actually explored it.”
But then Jeff went to their first OUTdoors Idaho LGBTQ+ Outing—a picnic at Lake Lowell—and he felt a sense of ease being surrounded by other queer people being authentically themselves. He thought, for the first time, that he could safely dress and present themself in the way that they wanted. As he attended more OUTdoors Idaho Outings, he felt his confidence start to grow. He went on hikes, bike rides, and camping trips where he says, “I was welcomed as the person I am.”
Over time, Jeff branched out and attended events with our Chapter’s General Outings program. “Even though it's not the queer-only [group], I know the Sierra Club's going to cultivate a safe and [inclusive] space.” They even said that they now feel comfortable dressing how they want outside of Sierra Club spaces, like when they do volunteer work at other local nonprofit organizations.
For Jeff, OUTdoors Idaho was the catalyst for their newfound confidence in self expression. “It just was that starting point to realize that I can present the way that I want and still be accepted and be welcome. And it really started with [OUTdoors Idaho]… If I didn't have that space that was queer-only, I wouldn't have been able to build up that confidence to start engaging in things that aren't queer-only. It's really been a big difference in my life to know that I can come to the Sierra Club, be myself, be welcomed, and be appreciated.”
Shea Cobb (they/them), another OUTdoors Idaho Outings leader, related to the relief of being able to be unapologetically themself in a queer-only space. Despite working in an inclusive place that they love, they explained, “Even when I go to work, I'm cautious about how I present myself… I even go by different pronouns at work just because it's easier.” In OUTdoors Idaho spaces, however, “I can come and say, ‘Hey, my name is Shea! I use they/them pronouns,’ and everybody's going to respect that, and I feel comfortable and safe.”
Kirsten Strough (she/her), OUTdoors Idaho Outings Leader and founder of Big Gal Backpackers Boise, also appreciates that she doesn’t have to hide or censor her identity in queer-only spaces. “I had a pretty challenging coming out experience,” she explained. “I grew up in a small town in Idaho, and I felt like it was never going to be okay to be gay and out.”
Despite Idaho’s environment being more welcoming than it was in her childhood, Kirsten explained that there are rural areas where she still doesn’t feel safe being out, especially in the current political climate.” Even in Boise, which is slightly more liberal than the rest of the very conservative state, sometimes [I’m] still like, ‘okay, when do I have to mind my Ps and Qs and say, ‘my partner’ instead of ‘my wife?’”
In OUTdoors Idaho, however, it felt empowering for Kirsten to be able to say, without reservation, “this is my wife. Here's all the awesome things she does. Here's all the awesome things we do together.” That openness hasn't always been an option for her. “Being out wasn't a possibility for me 15 years ago. It's amazing how much relief I feel just being able to be myself and people not constantly questioning me about it or judging me about it, which is how it used to be for me.”
Building LGBTQ+ community & solidarity
Beyond just ensuring the safety of attendees, participants also shared that OUTdoors Idaho fosters friendships, community-building, and a sense of belonging. Since getting involved in OUTdoors Idaho last year, Shea has made a close group of queer friends. They explained, “I had just graduated college a little over a year ago. In college, I had a lot more access to community and groups in general, but also to LGBTQIA+ friends.” When they found OUTdoors Idaho, they had been looking for ways to get involved with the local queer community outside of campus life, and decided to attend a hike, despite not knowing anyone there. Now, after nearly a year of participating in the program, Shea shared, “I have this whole group of close friends that I didn't have before. I was by myself a lot before I started coming to OUTdoors Idaho Outings, and this [has] really given me something to look forward to. It's a safe and it's a joyful space, and it's not something that I've really experienced elsewhere.”
Idaho Sierra Club Outings Chair and long-time OUTdoors Idaho leader Jennifer James (she/her) has also developed lasting relationships from the program. Jennifer appreciates that OUTdoors Idaho is an intentionally queer-only space because she, too, wants to build community with people who have a similar background and lived experiences, but she has found that it can be challenging to find and meet other queer folks, even in LGBTQ+-affirming spaces. She recounted, “I’ve been in LGBTQ+ spaces that welcome allies to participate, and while I understand the importance of those intersectional spaces, and recognize that allies attending are generally well-meaning, I’ve seen some of those spaces become dominated by allies, to the point where I was one of only a few queer people actually in attendance. I love OUTdoors Idaho because I know this space will remain a place where queer people get the relatively rare opportunity to know for sure they’ll be with other queer people.”
Being a part of the LGBTQ+ community in Idaho can feel incredibly isolating. It can’t be overstated how valuable it is to have friends and acquaintances and community that share some part of your identity, that can relate to your experiences of just being a queer person, especially in a conservative state.
Shea explained that it is particularly helpful to have that queer community as the Idaho and United States governments continue to curtail LGBTQ+ rights. During the 2024 Idaho legislative session, when several anti-trans and anti-LGBTQ+ bills were passed into law, OUTdoors Idaho had a hike scheduled the next day, and Shea reached out to their friends in OUTdoors Idaho. In their group chat, they texted that the hike couldn’t have come at a better time—that they really needed to vent and be in community, in a safe space when it felt like the world was against them. Now, as even more explicit attacks on trans and LGBTQ+ rights are progressing in the Idaho Legislature, having a strong community and space to be with other queer folks is more critical than ever.
Challenging the “outdoor enthusiast” stereotype
The community-building focus of OUTdoors Idaho is also important because many queer folks in the program are trying out new outdoor activities for the first time, or don’t feel comfortable trying them alone. Jennifer explained, “When it comes to outdoor spaces and outdoor activities, it’s fairly inaccessible for a lot of people. They don’t really know how to get into that space, don’t know where to start, don’t know how to find people that share those common interests.”
One OUTdoors Idaho participant, Jade Strack (they/them), loved to go camping and get outside with their family as a kid. As an adult, though, they didn’t have a community to do outdoor activities with, and they didn’t feel confident enough to try it on their own. “I had been wanting to go outdoors again, and [joining OUTdoors Idaho] has really helped me get out there, meet new people, and also be out in nature, which I’ve been really missing.”
Jennifer named building friendships and relationships as the key to get people involved in outdoor recreation. “Having a program like this is really important not only to build community, but also to build up the idea of getting outdoors for a group of people that haven’t been able to do so before.” It’s not just about offering beginner-friendly trips and outdoor skills education—but also cultivating a space where people feel safe and supported. People need to feel like they have a place to go.
For example, last year on the first OUTdoors Idaho LGBTQ+ beginner backpacking trip, almost every participant had never been backpacking before. By the end of the trip, participants had made incredible memories together, bonding over the ups and downs of backpacking. We commiserated over the obscene quantity of mosquitos and our many headaches, and laughed and connected as we swam in a mountain lake and gathered around the campfire to tell stories. By the end of the trip, folks were excited to sign up for another backpacking excursion—some even asked for more details about backpacking gear rentals so they could explore the option of doing it themselves.
Sierra Club Outings Leaders support people who have little-to-no experience in outdoor activities and work to make Outings as accessible as possible, from choosing accessible trails to setting a pace that works for everyone in the group. The group has learned many lessons from local disability advocates of how to make our Outings more accessible, as well as from valued community partner and event co-host Big Gal Backpackers Boise.
“I think people have some misconceptions about who can be a hiker, who can be a backpacker. It's got to be the person you see on the cover of magazines, who is the straight white guy climbing the mountain,” said Kirsten, founder of Big Gal Backpackers. “Groups like my group and the Sierra Club’s OUTdoors Idaho program are really challenging that narrative, saying it doesn't matter who you are or what you look like, [not] even your physical ability. You can get out and enjoy the outdoors.”
By simply going outside on OUTdoors Idaho trips, by taking up space in Idaho’s outdoor spaces proudly and visibly queer, we’re showing the world that the queer community belongs here and is not going anywhere. Kelly said it best: “We belong everywhere, and I want the world and the community to get used to that.”
I hope that the lived experiences shared here, just a few examples of what a space like this means to queer folks, helps you and others understand the value and importance of LGBTQ+-only spaces and why we ask that allies do NOT attend OUTdoors Idaho Outings. Help us honor this queer-only space so participants who want or need the space can feel more confident that they’re safe being themselves.
All that said, we DO also host regular outings for BOTH allies and the queer community—from hikes, to camping trips, and other fun gatherings! Like Jeff’s story, many queer folks in OUTdoors Idaho attend both OUTdoors Idaho and General Sierra Club Outings. Our intent is not to segregate or be exclusive, but rather to be inclusive, and give the local queer community a safe space to get outdoors that doesn’t exist elsewhere.
About the Author
Amanda Reed (she/her) is the Chapter Organizer at Idaho Sierra Club and is a proud member of the queer community. In this role, she manages OUTdoors Idaho, Idaho Sierra Club’s LGBTQ+-only Outings program. Amanda feels incredibly lucky to be able to dedicate her time to help build inclusive and safe places for the queer community in Idaho’s outdoors.