A woman in a posted video is wearing a backpack and smiling while standing on what appears to be a dirt road in a forest in Dartmoor National Park. The park is in the English county of Devon, according to the location noted in the post.
A message across the screen says: “Them: Solo female hiking isn’t safe. Me: Nah, I’ll be fine.”
The woman is seen kicking one of her legs in the air as she takes a step toward the camera. She then suddenly falls to the ground while bringing her leg back down and disappears from the video frame.
Asked whether she was OK after the fall, the poster replied in a later comment that she was “all good.”
A caption shared with the post reads: “The silence after I deck it into the bank is so loud. In all seriousness, I’ve been solo hiking for years and it’s safe if you know what you’re doing – this is just me being a dumb content creator on a practically flat path.”
The post comes as travel is set to hit “record highs” in 2024, with global tourism spending projected to reach $2 trillion, according to a December 2023 survey by Euromonitor International, a market research firm.
Female solo travelers “seek adventure, escape, social interaction, education, independence, and self-understanding,” said a December 2023 study in the Journal of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism.
However, research has shown that several factors discourage women from traveling alone, with the “most crucial issue” affecting their motivation being safety risk.
“Women can be more vulnerable to crimes, harassment, and theft including confronting safety and security risks that are sexual in nature. These factors can demotivate many women from traveling alone or may affect their travel choices and patterns,” the study said.
In 2022, female travelers avoided traveling alone mainly because they were worried about their personal safety, according to data compiled by Statista, a global data company.
Nearly three-quarters (69 percent) of the women surveyed cited this as their main obstacle against a solo trip. Other obstacles included higher costs and the fear of getting lost, reported by 65 percent and 50 percent of the women, respectively, according to Statista.
‘This Is Me Every Time’
Users on TikTok were amused by the clip.
PBAPhotography simply said “brilliant,” while user3635892753506 asked: “Hope you’re ok? If you are then I can laugh without guilt.”
The original poster replied: “Hahahaha yes all good, please laugh away.”
Genna said, “This is me every time,” and Elsie noted, “Such a me thing.”
“Good job no one was there to see you do it,” said vikingbeard3.
The original poster replied: “Couldn’t believe I’d caught the moment on camera.”