Beyond Litter on the Trail

B E Y O N D L I T T E R O N

T H E T R A I L

The cold ground crunches under your boots while golden leaves silently flutter earthward, lining the trail with a celestial glow. As you glance down, you notice something out of place. Your eyes focus on a strange item and you suddenly realize it’s a shiny red protein bar wrapper. Fighting back a little bit of anger, you bend over, pick up the wrapper, and shove it in your pack. Most hikers can relate to this story in one way or another because finding trash on the trail, unfortunately, isn’t a rare experience. Everyone should know not to litter right? But yet there is still trash on trails. Imagine the challenge that Leave no Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics, a national organization whose mission is to protect the outdoors by teaching and inspiring people to enjoy it responsibly,faces when trying to educate hikers that there is much more than just not littering to protecting the outdoors. Education and awareness are key, and we believe it is every hiker’s duty to know and practice the seven Leave No Trace Principles.

S O , W H A T A R E T H E L E A V E N O T R A C E P R I N C I P L E S ?

Plan Ahead & Prepare

Travel and Camp on Durable Surfaces

Dispose of Waste Properly

Leave What you Find

Minimize Campfire Impacts

Respect Wildlife

Be Considerate of Other Visitors

PLAN AHEAD & PREPARE: What does preparation have to do with Leave No Trace (LNT)? According to the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics website, “poor planning often results in miserable campers and damage to natural and cultural resources. Rangers often tell stories of campers they have encountered who, because of poor planning and unexpected conditions, degrade backcountry resources and put themselves at risk.” LNT also identifies the following 7 elements to consider when planning a trip. These elements will help to ensure everyone’s safety, re-enforce the LNT principles are followed, minimize resource damage, help to ensure an enjoyable trip, and increase self confidence and knowledge of the outdoors.

•Identify and record the goals (expectations) of your trip.

• Identify the skill and ability of trip participants.

• Select destinations that match your goals, skills, and abilities. •Gain knowledge of the area you plan to visit from land managers, maps, and literature. •Choose equipment and clothing for comfort, safety, and LNT qualities. •Plan trip activities to match your goals, skills, and abilities. •Evaluate your trip upon return note changes you will make next time.

LNT Center for Outdoor Ethics also recommends knowing the regulations and special concerns for the area you’ll visit, prepare for extreme weather, hazards, and emergencies, schedule your trip to avoid times of high use, visit in small groups when possible, consider splitting larger groups into smaller groups, repackage food to minimize waste, use a map and compass to eliminate the use of marking paint, rock cairns or flagging.

TRAVEL & CAMP ON DURABLE SURFACES: Established trails are there for a reason to minimize damage to the land. Staying on the trail is important to protect the surface vegetation and communities of organisms that aide in minimizing soil erosion and to prevent “faux” trails that could get a hiker lost. When going off trail is a must, such as when hiking to remote areas and/or looking for a private area to go to the bathroom, choose the most durable surface to walk on. Durable surfaces include established trails and campsites, rock, gravel, dry grasses, or snow.

DISPOSE OF WASTE PROPERLY: Pack it in, pack it out! This includes all trash, toilet paper, hygiene products, and human waste (in some areas). In areas where it is accepted to bury human waste, make sure to dig your cat hole 6”-8” deep and at least 200’ from any water source, campsite, and trail. When

washing yourself and/or dishes carry water at least 200’ from any water source and use a biodegradable soap. Scatter used water around.

LEAVE WHAT YOU FIND: Cultural artifacts such as arrowheads, pot shards, and grinding stones and natural objects such as antlers, rocks, or petrified wood create a special layer of discovery while in nature. Leave these special discoveries as is for others to enjoy. In some areas, such as National Parks, taking any cultural artifacts or natural objects is illegal. Cultural artifacts are protected by the Archaeological Resources Protection Act. Picking flowers might be temping, but this principle also applies to flowers. Imagine if everyone on the trail decided to pick some flowers? Flowers must be left so they are able to complete their life cycle and reseed the ground to come back the following year for everyone to enjoy. Rock stacking has become an increasingly big problem on the trail and especially in high traffic areas such as Zion National Park and Capitol Reef National Park.

Photo: Danielle Haynie

Rock stacking is much different than “Cairns” or piles of rocks that are two or more high used to mark trails for navigation purposes. According to the National Park Service, “National parks like El Malpais, Hawaii Volcanoes, and Acadia are carefully maintained by park staff to keep hikers on the correct path. Each park has a different way it maintains trails and cairns; however, they all have the same rule: If you come across a cairn, do not disturb it. Don’t knock it down or add to it. Follow the guidelines from the Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics to ensure future hikers can navigate the trail and prevent damage to the landscape.” They also give the following pointers:

•Do not tamper with cairns – If an intentional cairn is tampered with or an unauthorized one is built, then future visitors may become disoriented or even lost.

•Do not build unauthorized cairns – Moving rocks disturbs the soil and makes the area more prone to erosion. Disturbing rocks also disturbs fragile vegetation and micro ecosystems.

•Do not add to existing cairns – Authorized cairns are carefully designed. Adding to the pile can actually cause them to collapse.

MINIMIZE CAMPFIRE IMPACTS If making a campfire, use only established rings, fire pan, or mound, keep the fire small, and only burn sticks on the ground that can be broken with your hand. Make sure the wood and coals burn to ash (break up any remaining coals with your gloved hands) and are completely out and cool to touch. Scatter the ashes over a large area away from the site. Never leave a fire unattended and make sure there are no fire restrictions in your area.

RESPECT WILDLIFE: Seeing wildlife in the wild is such a magical experience. In order to keep you and the animals safe, always keep a good distance between you and the animal. Do not approach any wild animal. Never feed wild animals, as human food can make them sick and can encourage them to seek out humans for food. If you find an injured animal, do not touch it, and contact a ranger immediately. Allow animals plenty of space at water sources so they are not frightened off before getting the water they need.

BE CONSIDERATE OF OTHER VISITORS: Courtesy for other hikers is one of the main points of LNT Principles. Most hikers hike to get away from man made structures and all the noises of everyday life. Nature is a place to unwind and take in the solitude and beauty of the trail.

Blaring music, extra large groups, and trail damage take away from that experience. Use headphones for your music, limit your group sizes, and stay on the designated trail. When encountering horses or livestock, both hikers and mountain bikers must yield to them. Step off the trail on the downhill side and allow them to pass, being mindful not to spook the animals with loud noises or sudden movements. Mountain bikers must also yield to hikers. When taking a break, find a durable surface off the trail, and out of other’s way to stop. If you have a group of hikers that are faster behind you, stop and allow them to pass. Hikers coming up the trail have the right of way over hikers going down the trail. And remember to smile and maybe even say hello to others on the trail- you might even make some new friends.

We take these principles very seriously here at Hike It Off and hope that you do too. The future of our trails and natural areas depend on our respect and adherence to LNT Principles. If you would like more information, or to make a donation, please visit: lnt.org

“MIRACLES COME IN MOMENTS. BE READY AND WILLING”

D R . W A Y N E D Y E R