In 2001, when I was nine years old, my family took a vacation to the western states. We flew to Denver from North Carolina, then rented a RV and drove through seven (I think?) different states, visiting several national parks (Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Glacier, to name a few) and seeing many famous landmarks (Old Faithful, Mt. Rushmore, Devil Tower, to name a few). One souvenir that I brought back was this t-shirt. It was white, and had pictures of many different kinds of tracks. At the bottom, it said "Take nothing but pictures, leave nothing but tracks."
I just wanted to take this opportunity to hop on my soapbox a little bit about a really important concept I hold dear to my heart. This is a set of outdoor ethics known as "Leave No Trace." Basically, what you do is you go out in nature - backpacking, hiking, camping, what have you - but you leave nature exactly as you found it. It is built on seven principles.
From https://lnt.org (study this link if you want to learn more!), the seven principles are:
This means you don't leave litter, or pull out a plant to bring home.
This means that there is absolutely nothing in the environment that could harm the organisms living in it.
This means that nothing should leach into the water supply.
This means that the environment is unsullied by your (and my) filthy human hands.
This is a super important concept that I don't think enough people truly understand.
Last Friday, I hiked up Storm King with a sorority sister. At the beginning of the trail, we found a gigantic pile (not kidding, there was probably 30) of Kleenex and some human waste.
I get it. When nature calls, you gotta go. Even when you're in nature. But don't be a filthy human and make your deposit in the middle of the trail. Thing is, this was literally at the beginning of the trail. Not even twenty feet from the parking lot. If you so desperately have to go, hop in your car and go. The nearest bathroom or outhouse was literally just a few hundred yards down the road from the trailhead.
If you truly have to go on the middle of a hike, you hike 200 feet off trail, dig a "cat hole" and bury your human waste. You either bury your toilet paper or hike it out.
I'll admit. I'm a Leave No Trace purist. I believe that everything should stay as is. The trail is there for a reason, and everything on the sides of the trail should remain unsullied.
You do not feed the animals. You do not help a suffering plant by pouring your water over it.
If you camp, ensure that everything is as it was when you break camp. This means that you pick up your trash and pack it out. You cover any fire pits you may have made.
Leave No Trace is becoming increasingly more important, especially now that we have a couple of movies coming out (or have already come out) about the Appalachian Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail. The trails are going to be choked by wannabe thru-hikers who have not done sufficient research in ensuring that everything remains unsullied.
When I thru-hike the Appalachian Trail (whether it is in 2016 or not), there is one tradition that I completely refuse to participate in. This tradition involves picking up a stone at one terminus and carrying it to the other terminus (so for me, picking up a stone at Springer Mountain and carrying it to Mount Katahdin). To me, this violates Leave No Trace (see #4).
If you go out in nature, be considerate. I may be a bit of a hippie, a bit of a tree-hugger, a bit crazy, but it's for a good cause.
Go out. Live nature. Love nature. Leave it as it is.
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| Old Faithful at Yellowstone, 2001 |
From https://lnt.org (study this link if you want to learn more!), the seven principles are:
- Plan ahead and 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.
This means you don't leave litter, or pull out a plant to bring home.
This means that there is absolutely nothing in the environment that could harm the organisms living in it.
This means that nothing should leach into the water supply.
This means that the environment is unsullied by your (and my) filthy human hands.
This is a super important concept that I don't think enough people truly understand.
Last Friday, I hiked up Storm King with a sorority sister. At the beginning of the trail, we found a gigantic pile (not kidding, there was probably 30) of Kleenex and some human waste.
I get it. When nature calls, you gotta go. Even when you're in nature. But don't be a filthy human and make your deposit in the middle of the trail. Thing is, this was literally at the beginning of the trail. Not even twenty feet from the parking lot. If you so desperately have to go, hop in your car and go. The nearest bathroom or outhouse was literally just a few hundred yards down the road from the trailhead.
If you truly have to go on the middle of a hike, you hike 200 feet off trail, dig a "cat hole" and bury your human waste. You either bury your toilet paper or hike it out.
I'll admit. I'm a Leave No Trace purist. I believe that everything should stay as is. The trail is there for a reason, and everything on the sides of the trail should remain unsullied.
You do not feed the animals. You do not help a suffering plant by pouring your water over it.
If you camp, ensure that everything is as it was when you break camp. This means that you pick up your trash and pack it out. You cover any fire pits you may have made.
Leave No Trace is becoming increasingly more important, especially now that we have a couple of movies coming out (or have already come out) about the Appalachian Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail. The trails are going to be choked by wannabe thru-hikers who have not done sufficient research in ensuring that everything remains unsullied.
When I thru-hike the Appalachian Trail (whether it is in 2016 or not), there is one tradition that I completely refuse to participate in. This tradition involves picking up a stone at one terminus and carrying it to the other terminus (so for me, picking up a stone at Springer Mountain and carrying it to Mount Katahdin). To me, this violates Leave No Trace (see #4).
If you go out in nature, be considerate. I may be a bit of a hippie, a bit of a tree-hugger, a bit crazy, but it's for a good cause.
Go out. Live nature. Love nature. Leave it as it is.
I try to practice this every time I go on a hike or go out in the nature, I pick up trash or things that don't belong. When I was in Alabama, Fiona and I picked up trash off the beach during our nightly walks. It's incredible how little people care!
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