Did the Hiker Emoji Ever Exist on iPhone or Android?

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Plus, emoji combinations to use in place of the hiker

Co-authored by Aimee Payne, MFA Reviewed by Anyah Le Gilmore-Jones

Last Updated: November 27, 2024 Fact Checked

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Did the hiker emoji exist?

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Hiker Emoji Theories

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Hiker Emoji & the Mandela Effect

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Alternative Emojis

You’ve seen the hiker emoji, right? It’s a guy holding a walking stick while hiking past a mountain. You might be surprised to find out that there’s no such emoji on your phone. Even though many people remember using this emoji, it never existed. This article covers theories about what happened to the hiker emoji and whether it’s an example of the Mandela Effect (more on that later). Then, we’ll suggest some other emojis you can use in its place to get the same idea across.

What Happened to the Hiker Emoji?

A hiker emoji wearing a red shirt and carrying a walking stick never existed. Some think people may remember a combination of the walking or climbing emoji. It’s most likely an example of the Mandela Effect, a phenomenon where many people misremember something that never happened.

Section 1 of 4:

Did the hiker emoji exist?

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No, there was never a hiker emoji. There is no hiker emoji in the Unicode Standard emoji list, including the emojis used on iPhone and Android. Many people believe they have seen or used a robber emoji. They claim to have vivid memories of an emoji depicting a hiker wearing a red hat and carrying a walking stick. Some remember the hiker wearing a helmet and a backpack. A few remember 2 walking sticks or trekking poles. Many recall a mountain and evergreen tree in the background.^{[1]
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- There is a man with a white cane 👨‍🦯 and a woman with a white cane 👩‍🦯. There are also walking emojis for men🚶‍♂️and 🚶‍♀️. People may be confusing one of these emojis for a hiker.

Section 2 of 4:

Theories about the Hiker Emoji

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People are combining the walker 🚶‍♂️and climber 🧗emojis. Some people think the hiker emoji is a trick of memory that combines the walking emoji with the climber. The climber is wearing a red shirt and helmet that many remember. The walker is walking to the left, the same direction most people describe the hiker traveling.
- This is a reasonable explanation for why some people believe there was a hiker emoji, but there’s no proof one way or the other.
Some feel there must have been an unofficial emoji at one time that depicted a hiker with a red shirt and walking stick. However, no one has been able to produce a hiker emoji from another source that might explain the confusion.
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The hiker was removed or replaced with a boot emoji. Most people who believe there was a hiker emoji think it was removed. However, once an emoji is added to the Unicode Standard, it isn’t removed. This policy is strictly enforced because it lets people using the code know it will always be compatible with earlier versions.^{[2]
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Science Direct
Online archive of peer-reviewed research on scientific, technical and medical topics

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- There’s no evidence that the hiker emoji was altered or changed into a new emoji.
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People are thinking of “Cliff Hangers” on The Price Is Right. “Cliff Hangers” is a game that premiered on The Price Is Right game show in 1976. The game features a stylized mountain slope and a mountain climber carrying a pick axe with a long handle that looks like a walking stick.^{[3]
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- While the mountain climber is wearing hiking books, he’s shown climbing the mountain and is not wearing a red shirt. So, he doesn’t match how people remember the hiker emoji.
The icon used to mark a trailhead on maps issued by the National Parks Service shows a hiker wearing a backpack and carrying a walking stick. However, the hiker doesn’t have a red shirt and is moving to the right, not the left, so it’s not a perfect match.^{[4]
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US National Park Service
Agency responsible for the maintenance and promotion of national parks and monuments

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Section 3 of 4:

Hiker Emoji & the Mandela Effect

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The Mandela Effect most likely explains the belief in a hiker emoji. The Mandela Effect describes a phenomenon when a group of people consistently misremember facts, events, or other details. Sometimes, it involves remembering things that aren’t real. Other times, people’s memories have become warped over time, making it difficult to tell which memories are real.^{[5]
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Simply Psychology
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- Author and paranormal researcher Fiona Broome identified the Mandela Effect after realizing that she and many others believed that the South African anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela died in prison in the 1980s. Some people vividly remembered news broadcasts reporting on his death.^{[6]
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- Some believe people are confusing Mandela with Steve Biko, another South African anti-apartheid activist who was killed in prison in 1977.^{[7]
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- Have you experienced the Mandela Effect? Take our quiz to find out how many of these common pop culture references you remember correctly!
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There are several common examples of the Mandela Effect. False memories about Nelson Mandela’s death or a missing hiker emoji aren’t the only examples of the Mandela Effect. Examples are often misremembered marketing images or dialogue from iconic films. Here are a few examples:
- Rich Uncle Pennybags’ Monocle: One common example of the Mandela Effect is that people believe the Monopoly mascot has a monocle. This may be because they associate a monocle with wealth. But Rich Uncle Pennybags has never had a monocle.^{[8]
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  Cleveland Clinic
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- Sinbad’s Shazaam: Some people who grew up in the 1990s insist they remember a movie called Shazaam, starring the actor and comedian Sinbad. In fact, a Reddit community is devoted to finding out what happened to the film. However, Sinbad has denied starring in any such movie. There’s some thought that people are a 1996 movie starring Shaquille O’Neal called Kazaam for a Sinbad film.
- “Luke, I am your father.”: Darth Vader’s iconic line in The Empire Strikes Back is commonly misquoted as, “Luke, I am your father.” Even James Earl Jones, the actor who voiced Darth Vader, remembers it that way.^{[9]
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  Research source} But according to Lucasfilm, the company that produced the Star Wars films, the correct line is, “No, I am your father.”^{[10]
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- Fruit of the Loom Cornucopia: There are quite a few people who have distinct memories of the Fruit of the Loom logo featuring a cornucopia or horn-shaped basket. Fruit of the Loom posted on Twitter (X) to announce that their logo never pictured a cornucopia.^{[11]
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Many believe other “missing” emojis fall under the Mandela Effect. The hiker isn’t the only “missing” emoji people insist they’ve used in the past. However, there isn’t any evidence that these emojis have ever been a part of any emoji set. They could also be examples of the Mandela Effect.
- Teal Flip-Flop: Some social media users remember using a teal flip-flop emoji. Prior to 2020, when a thong sandal emoji was added, no flip-flop emoji of any color existed.^{[12]
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- Igloo: In May 2023, an Instagram user posted about an igloo emoji, but no igloo emoji ever existed. The post has received nearly 15,000 likes.
- Robber: Many people believe there was a robber emoji in a black-and-white striped shirt. No robber emojis exist in any universal emoji set.^{[13]
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Section 4 of 4:

Alternatives to the Hiker Emojis

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Use emojis that get the same point across, like 🥾 or 🚶. Use other emojis that suggest walking or other outdoor activities when reacting to Instagram posts or sending texts. The 2 most commonly substituted emojis are the hiking boot 🥾 and the walking person 🚶. A few other emojis that imply you’re hiking in the great outdoors are:
- Mountain ⛰️: A mountain implies you’re taking a nice hike in a beautiful mountainous setting.
- Footprints 👣: The footprints emoji shows 2 bare footprints that also imply walking.
- Compass 🧭:The compass suggests you’re hiking in the wilderness and need help finding your direction.
- Camping 🏕️: The tent and tree in the camping emoji imply you’re in the great outdoors.
- Person climbing 🧗:The hiking person emoji gives a similar feel because hiking often goes hand-in-hand with climbing. You usually have to hike to get to your climbing spot.
- Running shoe👟: A running shoe suggests moving by foot. Also, some hiking shoes look more like running shoes than hiking boots.
- Backpack🎒:The backpack is a common thing hikers carry, so it’s a perfect emoji to use when talking about your hike.
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Combine emojis to imply hiking. A lone emoji might not be clear enough to get your point across. Combine multiple emojis to better communicate the idea of hiking. Here are a few of the most popular options:
- Footprints, Compass, Backpack, & Hiking Boot 👣🧭🎒🥾: Use this combination of emojis to say you’re going on a journey in the wilderness. The footprints are what you leave as you hike. The compass, backpack, and hiking boot are all part of the gear a hiker needs.
- Hiking Boot, Camping, Person Biking, Person Climbing, & Mountain 🥾🏕️🚵🧗⛰️: Say you’re going for a hike and enjoying other outdoor activities with this combination of emojis. The first 4 emojis show all the things you plan to do, and the mountain suggests you’re out in nature. Leave off any of the activities you aren’t doing.
- Hiking Boot, Person Climbing, & Mountain🥾🧗⛰️: Use the hiking boot, person climbing, and mountain to say you’re going hiking in the mountains. The boot shows you’re hiking. The climbing person and mountain show where you’re going and that you may be hitting some rough terrain.
- Hiking Boot, Backpack, & Camera 🥾🎒📸: Try this combination if you’re going for a light hike to take pictures of some beautiful scenery. The hiking boot and backpack show you’re hiking, and the camera emojicommunicates your artistic intentions.
- Tree, Person Walking, & Sunrise Over Mountain🌳🚶🌄: Text that you’re going on a sunrise hike in the woods with this emoji combination. The tree and the walking person emoji suggest you’re walking outside. The sunrise over mountain emoji says what time of day you’re going.