ONLINE COMMUNITIES
HEAD OFFLINE AND INTO NATURE story by Crystal Simmons
W
hen Sloane "Texas" Wadsworth found herself without friends or extended family in a new city last August, she did what many modern adults do: she consulted the internet. What she found was a growing group of female hikers eager to show off their city. Members of the Houston Women's Hiking Group on Facebook meet at parks and trails across the Greater Houston region, share photos of beautiful hiking locations, and plan camping trips. For Wadsworth, it was a perfect fit. "As a nature photographer, I wanted to know where all the pretty trails were and connect with like-minded people," she says. A native of Arlington, Texas, Wadsworth moved to Colorado in the late 2000s and fell in love with the land. By 2011, she had fully embraced hiking and the outdoors. "I could spend every day on a hiking trail," she says. "In Colorado, I hiked at an elevation of 11,000 feet. It took a lot out of me, but I realized that's what I wanted to do my entire life." Her life changed drastically after she and her husband moved to Massachusetts so he could complete his master’s degree. They lived there a year before her husband received a job offer in Houston. Happy to return to Texas, Wadsworth spent the next two months making connections. "I wish I had done that in Massachusetts," she says. "I hardly met anyone – and then COVID-19 happened. I felt isolated. I was there a year, and I only did two hikes." Wadsworth is one of many Texans finding fulfillment in online communities. 26
Precinct4Update Spring/Summer 2021
