Loving the Land Lightly

by David M. Frey

Step into America’s wild country, and it’s easy to believe you’re the first to set foot there. But with millions heading to the outdoors each year (280 million in our national parks alone), you’ve got plenty of company. That’s why it’s important to leave nature as beautiful as you found it. Or more beautiful.

“I applaud the whole concept of leaving the outdoors better than you found it,” says John Gookin, curriculum manager for the National Outdoor Leadership School in Lander, Wyo.

That can mean lots of different things, Gookin says, such as packing out stray gum wrappers others left behind. See an abandoned wood stove? You don’t have to carry the whole thing out; just take a piece, Gookin says.

But respecting the outdoors means more than that. Beautiful landscapes often are our most sensitive. Step onto alpine tundra, and it could take years to recover. Many deserts are made of crypto-biotic soil–a network of tiny living fibers. Walk off the trail, Gookin says, and count on five to 10 years for those footprints to heal.

When you’re in a state or national park, he says, follow its rules about where to camp. But out in the backcountry rules are hard to come by, so Gookin has some of his own.

Found that perfect campsite? You’re probably not the first. It’s often easy to find a spot where somebody else once set up a tent, so use it, Gookin says. “There’s no question that it’s better to reuse established sites than it is to search for pristine ground to set up your tent on.”

If you’re building a campfire, be conservative. Dead wood will decompose into soil one day, so don’t take it all for a blazing bonfire. And use existing fire circles. If you’ve found a few, get rid of the smaller ones, Gookin says. He often tosses away the stones, scatters some local seeds, maybe even spreads in some horse manure from around camp. “Till it like a garden,” he says.

Gookin recommends a clean-burning camp stove, not a campfire. And consider sandals or sneakers to sit around. They’re easier on the soil than big hiking boots.

Taking a short hike? Stick to the worn parts of the path. And don’t step off the trail just to avoid a little mud.

If it sounds like a lot of work, it shouldn’t, Gookin says. “You can do all these things and still have fun.” And it makes it more fun for everyone following behind you. They want to think they’re the first ones to set foot there, too.

David M. Frey of Carbondale, Colo., is a freelance writer and outdoorsman.

first appeared: 9/2/2001