Trail Etiquette

[Coldspring]

I don't mind an occasional fire ring and cleared out area every few miles. As long as they are kept clean and look established, it's a reminder that people actually use the trails. We don't have many hikers in my neck of the woods. I get so tired of being asked what I'm hunting. All we have are ATVers and deer hunters, they pretty much have control of the national forests. If you mention you're a hiker, people act like they've never heard of such. As far as the beautiful local rivers, we get partying idiots in the summer, and they trash the place. The locals don't know anything about paddling, they only use noisy johnboats and take their fishing as seriously as their deer and squirrel hunting. The area is so poor, that the meat they take does help sustain their families, I'll give them that much credit. At least you can pick up trash and toss the rocks from a fire ring. Many of our trails have been irreversibly destroyed by ATVers, and there is nothing the handful of the local hikers can do about it. ATVers around here are usually drinking and carrying firearms, and are threatening to hikers, since they hate them so bad. They just hate it that their "rights: to use the forest are outlawed and we have no motorized vehicle signs on the trails. They even vengefully trashed some old trail we recently rehabilitated, in retaliation for us invading their pot growing and meth making hideouts. Heck, I'm glad to see a little litter once in a while, if it is hiker litter. It's quite nice compared to the outlaw ATVers.

[slowhike]

yep, the easier the place is to access in a casual way that doesn't require much thought, effort, or preparation, the more likely it is to get trashed.

[BillyBob58]

In all the years I have been hiking the Wind River Mountains in Wyoming, I have seen very little trash. I can usually hike for days with seeing any. Two years ago, at a lake that was one days hike from the trail head ( which itself is an hour on a a mostly dirt road from the nearest tiny town), we saw several areas with exposed toilet paper. Other than that, I don't think we saw one piece of trash during a 35 mile hike. Of course, we saw very few people. But normally, as we get further in, we usually see no trash. Though we do see ( and sometimes use ) the occasional fire ring. It's obvious that the vast majority of hikers there are of the "leave no trace" mentality. I suspect that the folks who come in with the horse packers would often be a problem, but apparently the guides that are with them keep things pretty well cleaned up.

On my week long hike along the much more crowded Hoh River Trail in WA's Olympic National Park last Sept, I saw no trash. There may have been some, but I didn't notice any.

[pure_mahem]

I don't mind an occasional fire ring and cleared out area every few miles. As long as they are kept clean and look established, it's a reminder that people actually use the trails. We don't have many hikers in my neck of the woods. I get so tired of being asked what I'm hunting. All we have are ATVers and deer hunters, they pretty much have control of the national forests. If you mention you're a hiker, people act like they've never heard of such. As far as the beautiful local rivers, we get partying idiots in the summer, and they trash the place. The locals don't know anything about paddling, they only use noisy johnboats and take their fishing as seriously as their deer and squirrel hunting. The area is so poor, that the meat they take does help sustain their families, I'll give them that much credit. At least you can pick up trash and toss the rocks from a fire ring. Many of our trails have been irreversibly destroyed by ATVers, and there is nothing the handful of the local hikers can do about it. ATVers around here are usually drinking and carrying firearms, and are threatening to hikers, since they hate them so bad. They just hate it that their "rights: to use the forest are outlawed and we have no motorized vehicle signs on the trails. They even vengefully trashed some old trail we recently rehabilitated, in retaliation for us invading their pot growing and meth making hideouts. Heck, I'm glad to see a little litter once in a while, if it is hiker litter. It's quite nice compared to the outlaw ATVers.

Just a side tab and sorry to wander as I do all 3 of these activities. if the government doesn't also allocate trails for atvers to use this is often what happens. and sometimes like where I grew up the only trails that where made and used where by atvs. 2 years ago the forrest service marked the trails with no motor vehicle signs allowwed, narrowed the entrances, and declared the trails hiking/ horse trails. While I see your argument as I don't like hiking around atv's and such when I'm doing that. You can hardly call some of these actions fair. Not everyone is irresponsible but a handful of bad apples do ruin the whole bunch.

ATVing can be a responsible activity since moving to vermont I have noticed how all three can cohabbitate. Vermont sets up trails for snowmobiles, atvs, and hiking. Most of the hunters I've seen don't use hiking trails they kind of know where they are going or meander through the woods, most I notice don't want to so much as crack a twig, spooks the game don't you know. The game wardens regulate all of the various groups and usually all have separately marked trails. Snowmobiles have trails that go from the bottom of the state to the top, something vermont has worked with local land owners to obtain right of ways across farmlands. All of these trails can intern be used for atv's when it's not snowing, vermont also stipulated that once the snow falls the atvs go to there own trails and cannot operate on the snowmobile trails. We don't run across a lot of garbage if you find it it's usually because somebody drove in and dumped there house trash, disgusting. Good thing is when they get caught there community service is to clean the entire area, serves em right.

Just thought to show you how when a state considers all the people that want to use land how they can coexist. And from what I've noticed it seems to work pretty darn good.

[Nudgeworth]

Wow, some really awful stories, and some really good ones.
The worst i've ever seen was on the Port Craig track, which is on the south coast of th South Island.
Someone had obviously boated in the and set up camp for a while. And then left leaving their rubbish behind.
On the bright side at least it was neatly stored in plastic bags.

Funny, they obviously didn't want to make a big mess, but they left it behind...

o_O?

[Frolicking Dino]

There are areas here - mostly up toward Slickrock Wilderness in NC - where hunters go in for several days - probably on ATVs. It is not uncommon to be bushwacking and find a 24-pack of empties, a giant fire ring, and several days worth of garbage left behind - along with empty ammo boxes and toilet paper a bit away from the camp. Same thing in Citico Wilderness. It is really sad as these are both beautiful, wild areas.

[Cannibal]

Wow! I finally found a reason to be thankful in Florida. Most of the FT is actually pretty clean. There are a few spots that you'll find the standard condom wrappers and beer cans, but luckily not many. Once you get 1/4 mile from the trailheads it's almost pristine. Of course my theory is that the gigantic friggin spiders carry away all the trash for some evil purpose.

[Preacha Man]

Most of the places that I go to are really nice too. I almost always have to carry out someone's Granola wrapper that probably fell from their pocket, but this one trip was just crazy. I agree that it all begins with education and teaching people who honestly do not think about it. The boys that I take hiking always get mad at me when I make them "police" the area and scatter leaves. Thank you for all the great stories, I hope that we can keep the spirit of leave no trace in all our threads so that our new members can see the importance of keeping our trails and planet clean.

[GrizzlyAdams]

Wow! I finally found a reason to be thankful in Florida. Most of the FT is actually pretty clean. There are a few spots that you'll find the standard condom wrappers and beer cans, but luckily not many. Once you get 1/4 mile from the trailheads it's almost pristine. Of course my theory is that the gigantic friggin spiders carry away all the trash for some evil purpose.

and here I thought it was the gigantic friggin alligators that carried off the hikers themselves.

I'm not a fan of reptiles.

"Snakes, why did it have to be snakes?" --Indiana Jones

Grizz

[Cannibal]

Just a side tab and sorry to wander as I do all 3 of these activities. if the government doesn't also allocate trails for atvers to use this is often what happens. and sometimes like where I grew up the only trails that where made and used where by atvs. 2 years ago the forrest service marked the trails with no motor vehicle signs allowwed, narrowed the entrances, and declared the trails hiking/ horse trails. While I see your argument as I don't like hiking around atv's and such when I'm doing that. You can hardly call some of these actions fair. Not everyone is irresponsible but a handful of bad apples do ruin the whole bunch.

ATVing can be a responsible activity since moving to vermont I have noticed how all three can cohabbitate. Vermont sets up trails for snowmobiles, atvs, and hiking. Most of the hunters I've seen don't use hiking trails they kind of know where they are going or meander through the woods, most I notice don't want to so much as crack a twig, spooks the game don't you know. The game wardens regulate all of the various groups and usually all have separately marked trails. Snowmobiles have trails that go from the bottom of the state to the top, something vermont has worked with local land owners to obtain right of ways across farmlands. All of these trails can intern be used for atv's when it's not snowing, vermont also stipulated that once the snow falls the atvs go to there own trails and cannot operate on the snowmobile trails. We don't run across a lot of garbage if you find it it's usually because somebody drove in and dumped there house trash, disgusting. Good thing is when they get caught there community service is to clean the entire area, serves em right.

Just thought to show you how when a state considers all the people that want to use land how they can coexist. And from what I've noticed it seems to work pretty darn good.

There are MANY points on the FT that the trail either merges with ATV trails or runs (literally) side by side. Like everywhere else, there is virtually no separation between the hiking trail and the hunters. I don't find they are the ones cluttering things up. All the 'trash dumps' are suspiciously close to rural areas. I think the hikers, hunters, and ATVers are much more aware of the beauty found in the woods, swamps, bogs, whatever.

The hunters spend the off season walking the trails (I guess to scope out the game). I suspect they are a big part of why the trails are kept clean. The ATVers probably go back home to do their drinking and bragging. I agree that when the primary users of the outdoors decide to keep it beautiful, it stays that way. Yet another reason everyone should go for a walk (or ride) from time to time. After you see a mess in the wilderness that you love, it really makes you want to do your best to not add to it.