Extreme Weather Reshapes Recreation Across the U.S.
CABLE, Wis. – Changing climate conditions are forcing adjustments to outdoor recreation nationwide, from the ski trails of Wisconsin to the hiking paths of Arizona. Increasingly frequent extreme weather events - including warmer temperatures and reduced snowfall – are altering long-held traditions and prompting concerns about the future of outdoor activities.
The American Birkebeiner ski race in Cable, Wisconsin, a Nordic skiing event that typically draws over 10,000 participants annually, has faced notable challenges in recent years. In 2017, races were canceled altogether due to a lack of snow. In 2024,organizers resorted to using snowmaking machines to create a 10-kilometer loop instead of the usual 50- or 53-kilometer course.”In the photos, you would see this little white ribbon of snow on the trail, and it was brown everywhere else,” said one observer, describing the recent lack of snow in Wisconsin as “freaky.” Birkie spokesman Shawn Connelly stated the American birkebeiner Ski Foundation has maintained its events through donor funding for snow-making equipment, adding, “As long as we have the cold, we’ll have the snow, and we’ll continue to host North America’s largest annual cross-country ski race.”
Meanwhile, rising temperatures are impacting recreation in warmer climates. Floodlight, a nonprofit newsroom investigating obstacles to climate action, reports extreme heat is reshaping recreation and attitudes toward it.
These changes come as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency proposed in July rescinding the 2009 Endangerment Finding, which established greenhouse gases as a threat to public health and the environment – a foundation for federal emissions regulations over the past 16 years. This proposal follows the Trump administration’s rollback of initiatives from the Inflation Reduction Act aimed at reducing the country’s climate impact.
Environmental advocates criticize the administration’s approach. “Americans are already suffering from stronger hurricanes, more severe heat waves and floods, and more frequent fires,” said Fred Krupp, president of the Environmental Defense Fund, in a statement. “(Americans) are watching these climate disasters get worse (and) the danger to their lives and health intensify.”
