Firefly Outdoor + Economics

Awesome things happening in Alabama!

Think recognition of the outdoor economy is new? Landscape photographer Seneca Ray Stoddard observed the economic impact of Adirondack recreationists as early as 1880 describing it as "a trail of prosperity." And he wasn't alone. Throughout the nineteenth century, commentators on the Adirondack region of upstate New York recognized the influence of outdoor tourists on rural communities. In his 1849 "The Adirondack; or, Life in the Woods," Joel Headley noted visitors to the High Peaks region had “brought prosperity to our hamlets, turning modest inns into bustling centers of commerce.” In 1857, Samuel Hammond noted, “The annual pilgrimage of city dwellers to our serene lakes and forests has not only enriched their spirits but also the coffers of our local tradesmen and guides.” With the advent of the railroads, more Americans, especially those in the emerging middle class, gained access to outdoor experiences. This wasn’t lost on Thomas C. Durant, a vice president of the Adirondack Railway Company, who in 1871 foresaw “a flourishing era where tourism shall uplift the economic fortunes of our mountain communities.” These quotes come from a short section of Chapter 2 of my forthcoming book, Wild Profits: Exploring America's $1 Trillion Outdoor Economy. As well as this observation: "Notably, these claims were rarely substantiated by residents of the beneficiary communities or the business said to have thrived from tourism."

The Confluence of States has released a new guide "How to Create an Office of Outdoor Recreation" and is launching, with Outdoor Recreation Roundtable, the 25 in 2025 campaign, challenging states to create the nation's 25th state-level office of outdoor recreation. This guide is a great distillation of a bunch of best practices and resources that will be helpful to anyone making the case for their state's outdoor economy or taking the next step of leading the creation of a statewide office. Check out the new resource and more details about the campaign here: https://lnkd.in/ebRWs8QK

I'm looking forward to speaking at the InBIA, International Business Innovation Association summit on incubating outdoor business ecosystems. If you happen to be in Philly that week for either InBIA or the Main Street America conference, please feel free to reach out!

It's not every day you get to facilitate a workshop at the foot of a ski slope or in one of your favorite breweries. But in the last two days we hosted ELEVATE Outdoors PA workshops at Tussey Mountain near Boalsburg and at New Trail Brewing in Williamsport. Lots of great feedback on current gaps in resources, outdoor business needs and many opportunities to improve access to capital, knowledge sharing, advocacy and more. And, of course, a lot of consensus around the proposed outdoor business alliance providing value for PA's outdoor industry.

Silas was in Hershey, PA today presenting on cell-phone-based visitation and economic analysis for parks and trails at the Pennsylvania Recreation & Park Society annual conference with PA DCNR's Brandon Hoover. Firefly's research on park and trail visitation will appear in Pennsylvania's new Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan, which will be released in the coming weeks!

Last week in Philly, I had a blast kicking off the first of 10 ELEVATE convenings across PA to bring together outdoor businesses and support organizations to help co-create the future of PA's outdoor industry. We heard thoughtful and actionable ideas, we documented success stories and areas of opportunity, and we saw coordination and future collabs emerging in real time. It was an affirmation of the work of Nathan Reigner and his team at the PA Office of Outdoor Recreation the last few years, and the concept we have been fleshing out with dozens (and now hundreds) of stakeholders to create Pennsylvania's first outdoor business alliance. And then I got sick and missed the three workshops this week.😓 But by all accounts the great conversations continued in Bethlehem and Columbia, and I'm sure our friends in Wilkes-Barre and NEPA will be awesome this evening. The GREAT news? You still have a chance to participate in one of the SIX remaining workshops: March 17 - Pittsburgh March 18 – Bedford March 19 – Boalsburg March 20 – Williamsport March 25 - Erie March 26 - Coudersport You can find more details and register here: https://lnkd.in/e4jvG6GP

The recent National Park Service layoffs have raised concerns about their ripple effects across America's tourism ecosystem. To illustrate why this matters, let me share a fascinating network analysis of Utah's spring tourism patterns. In this visualization, each dot represents a location, with size representing the influence in the network. The connecting lines? Those represent visitor flows, with thicker lines indicating higher traffic. Different colors reveal distinct communities of places within Utah. Within a single visualization you can understand importance, influence, connectivity and key links within a destination. In the right image, Arches National Park and its connections are isolated to make visible the connections to Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks (in red) as well as the Salt Lake Area places in green. What's striking to me about this visualization is how our National Parks act as both community anchors and bridges between different communities. Just as removing key nodes in a network can disrupt the entire system, diminishing the National Park experience could impact tourism across entire regions. For states like Utah, where National Parks drive significant tourism, the quality of park experiences shapes the health of the broader visitor economy. These aren't just isolated landmarks - they're the keystones of complex tourism networks. #NationalParks #TourismAnalytics #NetworkScience #DestinationManagement"

Are you aware of The Beige Book? The "book" is a report the Federal Reserve publishes 8 times each year to summarize economic conditions in each of its 12 districts. Hate numbers? Failed economics? The information is shared in a clear and qualitative narrative manner. If you're looking for a free way to quickly and easily understand the macroeconomic conditions shaping your region and impacting your community or business (or just want to sound smarter at your next cocktail party), this is a great place to start. The Beige Book: https://lnkd.in/d3ARB_z4

Skateparks are often overlooked outdoor recreation assets, but they bring great value to communities and regions. Like trails and parks, they provide a higher quality of life to residents while attracting some tourists, but they tend to serve younger, more diverse and more loyal users than the typical outdoor amenity. We recently pulled visitor data for the Reid Menzer Memorial Skate Park in York, PA and found 7,400 unique visitors made 33,900 visits to the park in 2024. The average skater visited 4.5 times during the year--nearly twice the average frequency of visits to the local rail trail and county park. Hundreds of visitors skated 30+ times last year.