Country info for backpacking in the United States

The U.S. is difficult to characterize because of its size and diversity, both in geography and in people, but an overview will help travelers to see these differences and perhaps help to find what they are most interested in. It is not realistic to see a little of everything unless one has a very long time to spend; indeed, even lifetime residents have trouble taking it all in. Part of the States' appeal is that you can experience so much in one country. Due to the vastness of their own country, and due to the fact that many of the neighboring countries did not require U.S. citizens to have them, fewer than a third of Americans have passports, although this number is expected to increase greatly. Recently, with the requirement of a passport to travel to its neighboring countries, Canada and Mexico, as well as to nearby Caribbean countries, there has been a surge in demand for passports.

Geography

The Grand Canyon The U.S. is one of the largest countries in the world in terms of area (at roughly 9.6 million sq km, it's about half the size of Russia and around the same size as China). The contiguous United States (the 48 states other than Alaska and Hawaii) are bound by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west, with much of the country's population living on these two coasts. Its only borders are shared with Canada to the north, and Mexico to the south. The country has three major mountain ranges. The Appalachians extend from Canada to the state of Alabama, a few hundred miles west of the Atlantic Ocean. They are the oldest of the three mountain ranges, and are not particularly high, but offer spectacular sightseeing and excellent camping spots. The Rockies are the highest in North America, extending from Alaska to New Mexico, with many areas protected as national parks. Their natural wonders offer impressive hiking, camping, and sightseeing opportunities. The combined Sierra Nevada and Cascade ranges are the youngest. The Sierras extend across the "backbone" of California, with sites such as Lake Tahoe and Yosemite National Park, then give way to the even younger volcanic Cascade range, with some of the highest points in the country. The Great Lakes define much of the border between the United States and Canada, also known as the North Coast. Formed by the pressure of glaciers retreating north at the end of the last Ice Age, the five lakes touch the states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York. The lakes span hundreds of miles, and their shores vary from pristine wilderness areas to industrial "rust belt" cities. They are the second-largest body of freshwater in the world, after the shrinking polar ice caps.

Climate

The overall climate is temperate, with notable exceptions. Alaska has Arctic tundra, while Hawaii and South Florida are tropical. The Great Plains are dry, flat and grassy, turning into arid desert in the far West. Seasons vary dramatically in the northern and mid-western major cities. In a single winter storm, as much as 2 feet (61 cm) of snow can fall, with bitterly cold temperatures. Summers are typically mild but very humid. However, temperatures over 100°F (38°C) sometimes invade the entire Midwest and Great Plains region now. Some areas in the northern plains can experience dangerously cold temperatures of -30°F (-34°C) during the winter. Temperatures below 0°F (-18°C) sometimes reach as far south as Kansas or even Oklahoma. The climate of the South also varies, but with the extremes coming instead in "the long, hot summer", somewhat resembling tropical climates (the climate in the South is partially tropical). Humidity and high temperatures make warmer months in these states good for little but sipping iced tea and plunging into cool bodies of water. But from October through April the weather is glorious, and nuisance insects subside. The Great Plains & Midwestern states also experience tornadoes from the late spring to early fall, earlier in the south and later in the north. See the Tornado safety article for more information. States along the Atlantic coast and the Gulf of Mexico, may experience hurricanes between June and November. These intense and dangerous storms frequently miss the the U.S. mainland, but if one is forecast to hit, do not take the situation lightly. Evacuations are often ordered for areas in the direct path of the storm and should be heeded. The Rockies are very cold and snowy. Some regions see over 500 inches (1,200 cm) of snow in a season. Some of the world's most famous ski resorts are located in Colorado and Utah. Even during the summer, temperatures are cool in the mountains, and snow can fall nearly year-round. The Southwestern deserts are extremely arid and hot during the summer, with summer temperatures exceeding 100°F (38°C) through most of the summer. This includes such cities as Las Vegas and Phoenix. Thunderstorms can be expected in the southwest frequently from July through September because of the summer monsoon that rises from Mexico. Winters in this region are mild, and snow is unusual. Average annual precipitation is less than 10 inches (25 cm). Cool and damp weather is common in the northwest in areas such as in Seattle or Portland. Rain is most frequent in winter, and snow is rare along the coastal regions. The Pacific coast rarely sees snow and extremes in temperature are uncommon. Rain falls almost exclusively from late fall through early spring along the coast, except in western Washington, where rain falls year-round.

History

America was once populated by peoples who migrated there from northeast Asia. In the United States those that remain are known as Native Americans, or American Indians. With populations once in the tens of millions, most led tribal, hunter-gatherer lifestyles, although some developed political enclaves based on agriculture, such as the Five Nations of the Northeast and the Pueblo peoples of the Southwest. During the 16th and 17th centuries, various parts of the region were colonized by several European nations and/or their religious missionaries, including Spain, France, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Russia. The British colonies in Virginia and Massachusetts were the kernel of what we now know as the United States of America. By the early 18th century, 13 colonies ranged along the Atlantic coast from Georgia to present-day Maine. Their growth drove the displacement the Native American population westward and the extinction of many others, as well as the end of the embryonic Dutch and Swedish footholds. The southern areas, because of a longer growing season, had richer agricultural prospects, especially for cotton and tobacco. Large plantations developed with most of the labor being provided by African slaves, as was typical of most of Central and South America. The Northern colonies developed as mercantile societies modeled after the "home" country, Britain. In the late 18th century, colonial revolutionaries declared independence from Great Britain on July 4, 1776, eventually realized by a bloody Revolutionary War. The colonies formed a federal government, with its Constitution inspired by Enlightenment-era ideas about government and human rights. In the late 18th and early 19th century, this government established itself and expanded westward, under a "Manifest Destiny" for the nation to expand to the Pacific Ocean. Territories in the Midwest were added as new states, and the Louisiana Purchase of 1803 gave the United States nominal control of former French territory along the Mississippi River. Florida was purchased in 1813 from the Spanish; American settlers in Texas rebelled against the Mexican government, setting up a republic that was absorbed into the union. The Mexican-American War of the 1840s won the northern territories of Mexico, including such states as California, Arizona, and New Mexico, giving the continental US the rough outlines it has today. The marginalization of the Native Americans, and their concentration in the west by treaty, military force, and by the inadvertent spread of European diseases, continued apace. By the mid-19th century the differences between North and South had become severe. Though slavery was not the only issue between the two, it was an important one. By the 1860s, the Southern states decided to secede from the Union and the American Civil War broke out. It was one of the bloodiest conflicts in history, costing hundreds of thousands of lives. With the victory of the North a single country was maintained. While slavery was abolished, the former slaves by and large remained an economic and social underclass in the South. The late 19th century saw the U.S. cementing its power on the continent and making tentative expansions abroad. Alaska was purchased from the Russians in 1867, and Hawaii was annexed in 1898. The Spanish-American War gained the first "colonial" territories: the Philippines (later granted independence) and Puerto Rico (which remains by choice a US territory). In the Eastern cities of the United States, an immigration boom had begun. Southern and Eastern Europeans, especially Italians, and Slavs, including many Jews fleeing Russian pogroms, joined Irish refugees to become a cheap labor force for the country's growing industrialization. Many Southern African-Americans fled rural poverty for the relative security of industrial jobs in the North. Other immigrants, including many Scandinavians and Germans, moved to the now-opened territories in the West and Midwest, where land was available for free to anyone who would develop it. A network of railroads crisscrossed the country, allowing faster movement of people and materials, and thus accelerating development. With its entrance into World War I near the end of the conflict, the United States established itself as a world power. The creation of real wealth grew rapidly in this period. In the Roaring 20s stock speculation created an immense "bubble" which, when it burst in October of 1929, contributed to economic havoc, known as the Great Depression, across the country and around the world. This crisis exacerbated the disaffection among the working classes in the United States and around the world and led to a rise in socialist thinking that was to have a large effect on the rest of the century, particularly the mid-century. At the end of 1941 the United States entered World War II. In Alliance with the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union, the U.S. helped defeat the fascist regimes in Italy, Germany, and Japan. At the end of this war of unprecedented scale, the United States, which had been mostly spared from fighting on its own soil, became the dominant economic power in the world, responsible for nearly half of the world's production. It stood as the primary opposing power to the Soviet Union, a former ally which was attempting to recover from devastation and ensure its security by asserting its influence with military backing, giving rise to what is now known as the Cold War. Also at the end of WWII, African Americans, who had long suffered de facto disenfranchisement, demanded equal rights, with widespread demonstrations. This, and the status of women and other "overdue" societal changes that had been contained by the effort of the war, flowered into a virtual revolution. The unpopular war in Vietnam, a by-product of the Cold War, added to the social strife. Taken together these changes led to significant change in the country: the economic and political conditions for African Americans substantially improved; a majority of women entered the workplace, and this had a powerful effect on homelife, the workplace and the economy.

Culture

Because of its size and because nearly all citizens are descended from diverse immigrants, there is no single universal "American" culture. Visitors to the South will find a far different culture from those traveling to California or New York City. However, there is a culture that is said to be American, in a way a stereotype of what America wishes itself to be, a culture that people over the globe have seen in Hollywood film, and that has energized immigrants from all over the world. Like many stereotypes, there is a certain truth to it; likewise, there is a certain falsity. For example, it has been said that America is a "classless" society. This is true in the sense of class as it is traditionally known in Europe or India, where one's class at birth largely determines one's social station in life. But there is a huge disparity in the socioeconomic status of the upper and lower classes in America. The "classlessness" means that one can freely move between them by changing one's financial situation; one's outcomes, not one's origins, determine one's class. There is an impression that American culture is more materialistic and individualistic than many other cultures. The wealth on display almost casually in large shopping malls all over the country might seem shocking to someone from a developing country. Yet it is also true that America is more religious than most other industrialized countries. So it is a mixed bag, and this should make it an interesting place to visit. Many current trends in industrialized and developing countries began in the United States, and lots of modern inventions were either invented or first mass-produced in the United States. The dependence on cars and the national interstate system to get around has long been an American icon, and to this day the United States has one of the highest per-capita car ownership rates in the world. Other traditional elements of United States culture include Hollywood films, country music, blues, jazz, rock and roll, rap and hip-hop, baseball, American football, NASCAR racing, multiculturalism, as well as its infamously convenient fast food. While numerous political parties exist, the system is dominated by the Democratic and Republican parties. The current Democratic party tends to be more to the left on fiscal and social issues and draws more support from urban voters, especially in the Northeast and West Coast. The Republican party is more to the right on these issues and draws more support from voters in rural areas, especially in the South and Texas. The United States political system tends to favor centrists (by American standards); far-right or far-left political movements that might take hold in other places tend to do poorly here.

Holidays

The US has a number of holidays - official and/or cultural - of which the traveller should be aware (special events, closures, changed schedules, disruption, etc.) Note that holidays observed on Mondays are usually treated as weekend-long events. (A weekend consists of a Saturday and a Sunday.)

• New Years Day (January 1) - most businesses closed; hangovers from parties the previous night, football parties. Primarily a secular holiday, and the major celebration occurs the previous night.
• Martin Luther King Day (third Monday in January) - many government offices and banks closed; diversity-awareness programs.
• St. Valentine's Day (February 14) - no significant closures; romantic evenings out.
• Presidents Day (third Monday in February) - (also Washington's Birthday) - many government offices and banks closed; few observances, many stores have sales.
• St. Patrick's Day (March 17) - no significant closures; Irish-themed parades during the day, and parties in the evening. Travelers may want to be wary of the drunken revelry and associated drunk driving crackdowns.
• Easter (a Sunday in March or April) - few significant closures; Christian religious observances.
• Passover (timing somewhat similar to Easter; lasts a week) - Jewish religious observances.
• Memorial Day (last Monday in May) - most non-retail/tourism businesses closed; some patriotic observances; extensive travel to beaches and parks; traditional beginning of summer tourism season.
• Independence Day / Fourth of July (July 4) - most businesses closed; patriotic parades, fireworks after dark.
• Labor Day (first Monday in September) - most businesses closed; extensive travel to beaches and parks; traditional ending of summer tourism season.
• Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur - Jewish religious autumn holidays.
• Columbus Day (second Monday in October) - many government offices and banks closed; few observances.
• Halloween (October 31) - no significant closures - trick-or-treating and costume parties in the evening.
• Veterans Day (November 11) - many government offices and banks closed; some patriotic observances.
• Thanksgiving (fourth Thursday in November, unofficially the Friday and weekend after) - most non-retail businesses closed; family gatherings, on Friday major Christmas shopping begins.
• Christmas (December 25) - most businesses and restaurants closed the evening before and all day; exchanging gifts, Christian religious observances. If you need food from a restaurant, your best bet will be hotels and Chinese or Indian restaurants. People from non-Christian religions often go to the movies and eat at Chinese restaurants on Christmas.

For more information

The Federal system of government in the U.S. puts the states in charge of tourism and the federal government in charge of foreign policy. The result of this is that the Federal government provides the best information about legal requirements for entry, while the most detailed information about places to visit and see will be provided by the state tourism bureaus which will be happy to send you maps and literature. Contact information is available in the individual state entries. At state borders, highway rest stops usually serve as Visitor's Centers as well and often have a plethora of travel and tourism information and material for that state. If you call or write the state Commerce department, this is often the information they will mail you. Nearly every rest stop in the country has free maps of the state in which it is located.

Like most things in the US, crime varies greatly depending on the area. Most (but NOT all) large cities have higher crime rates, as might be expected. Outside of major cities and urban areas, however, crime rates are usually lower. As always, common sense goes a long way: do not go out alone at night, avoid high-crime areas, be wary of strangers, and do not draw attention to yourself. Carrying large quantities of cash is generally also not a good idea; tourists are sometimes targeted by thieves since they are more likely to be carrying cash with them. Credit cards are much safer and widely accepted. When in cities, be ready for strangers who will approach, tell a tale of woe (often involving a car in need of refueling or some other scenario requiring a modest amount of money), and then request several dollars. In the majority of cases the tale is untrue, and they pose no threat, so don't feel any obligation to part with your cash. A polite "Sorry, I can't help" will usually be sufficient; a firm "No" and walking away will almost always work.

Gay and lesbian

Americans' opinions of homosexuality are incredibly diverse, ranging from very accepting to extremely intolerant. Younger Americans in general tend to either be more accepting or simply neutral. Several states and many major cities require equal treatment in public accommodation, and a 2003 Supreme Court decision struck the last remaining "sodomy" laws from the books. However, same-sex marriages and civil unions are not recognized by the federal government nor by most states (only Massachusetts and New York recognize same-sex marriage, although California, Vermont, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Connecticut and a few other areas do have civil unions or legal equivalents) and in many states it is legal – but uncommon – for a gay couple to be denied a shared room. Also beware that it is legal for gays to be fired from their jobs in over 30 states. Openly gay men and lesbian women are barred from serving in the US military. Gay-bashing is not especially common, but physical and verbal attacks do happen. Remember that, especially in the south (known as the "Bible Belt"), fundamentalist or otherwise conservative Christians tend to be less tolerant of open displays of homosexual behavior. Anti-gay political groups are active in US politics and if you go to any kind of gay celebration or event, you may encounter such groups. The residents of most large cities are used to visible homosexuality, with smaller towns – especially those where fundamentalist Christianity is prevalent – being less comfortable with it. But even those who disapprove of homosexuality would usually prefer to ignore it or channel their opinions into political activism, so if you don't identify yourself as gay, it will probably not become an issue. Many large cities have neighborhoods where large numbers of gay/lesbian people live quite openly; New York's Greenwich Village, Chicago's Boystown, San Francisco's Castro Street and Noe Valley, Washington's Dupont Circle , and Los Angeles' West Hollywood are among the most established. An increasing number of resort areas are known as gay-friendly; these include old standbys like Fire Island, Key West, Provincetown, Ogunquit, Rehoboth Beach, Saugatuck, and newer hotspots like Asbury Park. In these areas, it is not a problem to be open about one's sexual orientation. In many other smaller cities, there are small neighborhoods with a gay presence although not necessarily known by a specific name. The presence of a rainbow flag hanging outside of a building almost always indicates that whoever owns or runs the building, be it a home, hotel or shop, is gay-friendly.

Illicit drugs

Street drugs, including marijuana, are illegal throughout the U.S. Marijuana use is more widely accepted than other drugs (particularly on the West Coast), but generally not to the degree that it is in Canada or Western European countries. Although a few states have passed laws legalizing the medical use of marijuana, this will not protect any foreign citizen caught in possession. Outside of drug-using circles, most Americans frown upon illicit drug use regardless of quantity, and travelers would be wise to avoid using such substances in the United States. Attempting to bring any quantity into the U.S. poses a serious risk of being arrested for "trafficking".

Prostitution

Prostitution is illegal in all areas except at licensed brothels in rural Nevada counties. In other states, tolerance and enforcement of prostitution laws vary considerably, but be aware that police routinely enage in "sting" operations in which an officer may pose as a prostitute to catch and arrest persons offering to pay for sex.

911

During any emergency, dialing 911 at any telephone will connect you to an area call center for all the emergency services in the area (police, fire, ambulance, etc). Calls to 911 are free from payphones and any mobile phone capable of operating with local carriers. Dispatchers will send appropriate personnel to deal with accidents, serious sickness, criminal, or any other emergency situations. Unless you are calling from a mobile phone, the 911 call center can almost always trace your call to locate you; with mobile phones location technology is less accurate and reliable. Abuse of the 911 program for non-emergency purposes can result in a heavy fine; only use this service for true emergencies. Some cities have a 311 number for situations which are not of immediate danger.

The American health care system is world-class in quality, but very expensive for the uninsured. Americans generally use private health insurance, paid either by their employer or out of their own pocket; some risk paying high hospital bills themselves, or depend on government subsidized health plans. As a traveler, it is advisable to acquire health insurance with medical evacuation coverage before arriving in the U.S.; should you not do so and a medical incident occurs, you may face enormous hospital bills. In a life-threatening emergency, call 911 to summon an ambulance to take you to the nearest hospital emergency room ("ER"), or in less urgent situations get to the hospital yourself and register at the ER's front desk. Emergency rooms will treat patients without regard to their ability to pay, but you will still be presented with a bill for all care. Do not use ERs for non-emergency walk-in care. Not only can this be 3-4 times more expensive than other options, but you will often wait many hours before being treated, as the staff will give priority to patients with urgent needs. In most areas, the charge for an emergency room visit starts around $500, in addition to any specific services or medications you may require. Most urban areas have minor emergency centers (also called "urgent care", etc.) for medical situations where a fully equipped emergency room would be excessive. However, their hours may be limited, and few are open overnight. Walk-in clinics are another place for travelers to find routine medical care, letting patients see a doctor or nurse-practitioner without an appointment (but often with a bit of a wait). They are typically very up-front about fees, and always accept credit cards. To find one, check the yellow pages under "Clinics", or call a major hospital and ask. Make sure to tell the clerk you will be paying "out of pocket"; if they assume an insurance company will be paying for it, they may order tests that are not medically essential and in some cases bill for services that aren't actually provided. Dentists are readily available throughout the United States (again, see the yellow pages). As most Americans do not have dental insurance, dental offices are accustomed to explaining fees over the phone, and most will accept credit cards. Most counties and cities have a government-supported clinic offering free or low-cost testing and treatment for sexually transmitted diseases; call the Health Department for the county you are in for more details. Many county clinics offer primary health care services as well, however these services are geared towards low-income residents and not foreign travelers. Planned Parenthood (1-800-230-7526) is a private agency with clinics and centers around the country providing birth control and other reproductive health services for both females and males.