A Comparative Study of Mountain Incidents between Visitors’ Behavior and Different Spatial Scales of Mountains

Abstract

Based on the police records regarding mountain incidents, this study observed the differences in incident characteristics depending on the visitors’ behavior and compared incidents related to collecting behavior (picking wild vegetables, river fishing), skiing behavior, and general mountaineering. The results revealed that incident characteristics related to collecting and skiing were different from those related to general mountaineering, and it is thus necessary to deal with them individually. From the comparative study among mountains of different spatial scales which were compounded by inter mountain range, intra mountain range, and individual mountains, mutual commonalities and differences in incident characteristics across spatial scales were confirmed. These commonalities and differences presented us with suggestions to reduce the frequency of such incidents and devise efficient countermeasures against them.