With the
recent celebration of Earth Day still fresh in our minds, the reports coming
from many of our local natural areas are disheartening; many of our Upstate
parks and green spaces are being negatively impacted by the increase in
visitation due to a year of covid-influenced activity. “Loved to death” is a phrase
we have been hearing more often about some of the most stunning places in our
region; Max Patch on the Appalachian Trail and Chimney Tops in Great Smoky
Mountains National Park are only a couple of places that have required intense
clean-up efforts, even closures due to abuse and over-use. But the effects are
being felt much closer to home as well, as places like the State Parks, Lake Conestee Nature Preserve, and Upstate
National Forest facilities enact closures, policy changes, visitor caps, and in
the case of Congaree National Park, an implementation of a lottery system during
synchronous firefly season to limit disturbance to critical habitat and try to
reverse harmful user trends.
We need
to be better stewards of our region if we want our children to be able to experience
the wonders of the natural world, and the tenets of “Leave No Trace” are a
great place to start. You may have heard the acronym “LNT” – this refers to the
Seven Principles of the Leave No Trace outdoor ethic, which provide a framework
of minimum impact practices for anyone visiting the outdoors.
Why
practice LEAVE NO TRACE?
While we
enjoy the natural world, Leave No Trace teaches us how to minimize our impacts.
Following the basic principles of LNT helps prevent the trashing of our natural
areas, water pollution, damage to trails, the harming of wildlife and
overcrowding, all while connecting youth to nature and providing enjoyable
outdoor adventure. LNT will not cost you a cent – these are all free things you
can do while enjoying the great outdoors as you normally would! It just means
taking a few extra steps when preparing for your next adventure, as well as
thinking things through while out and about.
Although
Leave No Trace has its roots in backcountry settings, it has been adapted so
that the seven principles can be applied anywhere and to almost every
recreational activity — from remote wilderness areas, to local parks and even
in your own backyard.
How
can I practice LEAVE NO TRACE with my children?
The 7 Principles - Leave No Trace
Center for Outdoor Ethics website details these seven tenets,
with invaluable info on each of them. Here are the 7 Principles, and seven ways
you and your family can recreate responsibly!
1. Plan
ahead and prepare, looking into the regulations, weather, and special concerns
for the area you’ll visit.
Do: Schedule your trip to avoid
high times of use, and have a Plan B in case the trailhead/park is full or the
park doesn’t allow pets and you’ve got your new puppy along.
Don’t: Get lost! Bring a map as
back-up to your navigating app, and know what the hazards will be in the area
you are visiting. Is there a lot of recent bear activity? A burn ban? Is it
gnat season? Knowing these things in advance can help you plan your time
outdoors so that it is relaxed and enjoyable.
Did
you know that
building rock cairns is considered vandalism in most of our local parks? Moving
rocks around can lead to resource damage by exposing soil to wind and water
erosion, and also disturbs the many critters that make their home in the
protected underside of a rock. Only rarely are cairns used to mark trails in
the Upstate; most often you’ll see trees “blazed”, or painted with a line to
mark the trail.
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| Rock stacks on Cedar Rock Mountain in DuPont Forest |
2. Travel
& camp on durable surfaces, protecting our trails, waterways, and
fragile ecosystems.
Do: Stay on the trail and utilize
switchbacks, avoiding shortcuts which often cause water to wash out plants/soil
and erode gullies.
Don’t: Hike on muddy trails; wet
trails are fragile, and muddy/icy trails can be slippery and dangerous for
kiddos.
Did
you know that trying
to avoid getting mud on your shoes and going around muddy spots causes what is
called “trail braiding”? This widening of trails contributes to both compaction
and erosion of soil. (Check out this article on hiking in wet weather!)
3. Dispose
of waste properly – pack it in, pack it out!
Do: Pack a bag for your trash, and
do a quick check of your campsite/trail rest stop before you leave. Apple cores,
spilled trail mix and paper are still garbage – they bring animals into increased
contact with humans leading to wildlife becoming sick & diseased, getting
hit by cars, or becoming problem animals.
Don’t: Leave human waste and toilet
paper lying around! Not only is it stinky and unsightly, but it degrades our water
quality when bacteria enter our waterways!
Did
you know that Googling
“how to pee and poop in the woods” will bring you hours of entertainment?
 |
| Red trillium |
4. Leave
what you find, preserving cultural/ historic artifacts and leaving rocks
and plants as you found them.
Do: Leave flowers for those who come
after you to enjoy. This also ensures that our rare plants have the opportunity
to reseed for healthier populations.
Don’t: transport firewood, as you can
introduce pests/disease to new areas. (For more info, visit Dontmovefirewood.org)
Did
you know that it
is illegal to collect plants, animals and artifacts from most of our public
lands?
5. Minimize
campfire impacts!
Do: Use a cook stove for cooking
and utilize established fire rings where fires are permitted, making sure your
fire is completely out when finished.
Don’t: Be the person to start a
wildfire with your Insta-photo-op!
Did
you know nearly 85%
of wildfires are caused by humans?
 |
| Elk, as photographed from vehicle in Great Smoky Mountains National Park |
6. Respect
wildlife by observing from a distance, and never feed wild animals!
Do: Respect trail closures and
barriers! Sure, it’s tempting to climb the fence to get that great photo out on
the ledge, but many times those barriers aren’t only there to protect you from
yourself, they also help minimize effects on nesting areas and protect fragile
ecosystems.
Don’t: Stack rocks in rivers! Moving
rocks and creating dams to make chutes or pools in a stream causes serious
damage to the delicate river ecosystem; aquatic plants and animals make their
homes on, under, and around these rocks, and when people move the rocks, the
nest is destroyed and the eggs and young fish die.
Did you know that waterfalls have some of the
most sensitive plant ecosystems in their spray zone? When you climb up the
rocks on the sides of waterfalls, you are not only endangering yourself (and
possibly the lives of the first responders who will have to carry you out), but
you are inadvertently creating social trails in the spray zone, encouraging
erosion, and possibly helping to create slippery, unsafe areas.
7.
Be considerate of other visitors.
Do: Follow social distancing
guidelines as suggested by medical experts and local authorities.
Don’t: Lower the quality of other visitors’
experience by playing loud music, allowing off-leash pets, and leaving behind
your trash.
Did
you know that
there is a hierarchy of right of way considered proper hiking etiquette? Check
out this National Park Service article for the full story,
but in general, hikers coming uphill have the right of way, bicyclists should yield
to hikers & horses, and hikers should yield to horses and other pack stock.
As a mom hiking with small kids, I yield to really just about everyone; it’s considered
courteous to yield to other hikers who are setting a faster pace.
 |
| Peachtree Rock, before and after (source 1st photo here) |
Leave
no Trace principle #8
Wait, I
said there were only 7 principles… Well, technically there are, but in the last decade
another tenet is being considered for inclusion, concerning geotagging. While
LNT is not anti-geotagging, serious consideration should be given to whether or
not a location is shared with every photo.
Do: Post a photo that specifies
your location along with appropriate Leave No Trace information, as that is a great
way to invite people into the outdoors. A geotag can empower people to research
safety measures, learn about the location’s history and culture, and find out
what to expect when visiting.
Don’t: Post the location of places
that can’t handle increased visitation: the site of a rare flower, a sensitive
waterfall ecosystem, a protected wildlife area.
Did
you know that
natural areas across the state are seeing an increased amount of poaching, with
rare animals and flowers being targeted due to their perceived value to
collectors? If you observe illegal activity on public lands, please contact SCDNR Operation Game Thief – see something, say something!
Enjoy
your world, leave no trace!
There
are a growing number of examples of places suffering from the negligent
attitudes of visitors, such as Bald Rock Heritage Preserve – once home to protected
plant species such as Piedmont ragwort and grass-of-parnassus, but today mostly
housing graffiti, broken glass, cigarette butts and illegal fire rings. Or
Peachtree Rock Heritage Preserve, whose namesake sandstone rock was toppled in
2013 by a combination of erosion and visitors carving their initials into the base.
Luckily, the colony of rare Oconee Bell growing in
Devils Fork State Park is thriving after State Park officials installed boardwalks
and fencing along the Oconee Bell Trail to keep visitors from trampling the
tiny flower, but other sites such as Bunched Arrowhead Heritage Preserve has
seen theft of plants over the last decade.
For my
family it comes down to is this – the natural areas in the Upstate have given
me so much in the last twenty years: trail time with the man who would become
my husband and the father of my children, later an escape to the woods with a
fussy baby, exercise to help get back into shape after a couple more kids, and
most recently therapy in the form of time outdoors as our family struggles to
retain some sense of normalcy in an anything-but-normal year. In return for all
of that, the very least I can do is bring a trash bag when we go out, to help
leave each place a little better than we found it!
Take nothing
but pictures, leave nothing but footprints, kill nothing but time. For future generations to have
the opportunity to enjoy our beautiful natural areas like you and I do, to see
undisturbed landscapes and enjoy an abundance of wildlife, leave everything as
you found it — it’s really that easy. Enjoy Your World. Leave No Trace!
For a
ton of resources on LNT, visit the Center for Outdoor Ethics LNT website. The resources there include
Bigfoot’s Playbook, a collection of activities, games and initiatives that
explore Leave No Trace principles, as well as youth education info and ways to
get involved!
