Leave-no-trace camping
Leave-no-trace camping is an increasingly popular – and necessary – approach to travel in wilderness areas. As the term suggests, the goal is for the camper to have as little impact as possible on the location they're visiting. One of its mottos is "Take nothing but pictures. Leave nothing but footprints." Its simplest and most fundamental rule is: pack it in, pack it out, but it goes beyond that.
UnderstandThe principles of leave-no-trace camping were developed in response to concerns that the increasing number of human visitors to previously uninhabited (or lightly inhabited) wilderness areas would destroy the very…
Get inChoosing where to go is as important as how to behave when there. The only remaining habitat of a rare bird may not sustain thousands of visitors, even if they were phenomenal at only leaving footprints.
Get aroundMany places where leave-no-trace camping is required feature established trails. Stick to them as much as possible. Yeah, the motto says it's OK to leave footprints, but keep them where they'll do the least harm.
BuyIf you want souvenirs of your excursion, either seek out a shop associated with the park where you're camping and buy your Death Valley snow globe there, or bring a camera and take photos.
EatAs foraging and fishing are ruled out, campers need to pack foodstuffs that provide high energy content per weight unit.
DrinkWater itself isn't a leave-no-trace issue, but if you're camping this way, you'll probably be drawing it from untreated sources such as lakes and streams.
ExcretePurists say that "pack it in, pack it out" applies to human wastes as well. But for obvious reasons, most leave-no-trace campers aren't quite so meticulous unless it's required by the specific environment.
SleepIn an area with established campsites, leave-no-trace is generally as simple as leaving the site in the same or better condition than you found it. Don't build a fire pit, don't haul a log in to sit on, etc.
See also
Sources and licences
- Guide text adapted from the Wikivoyage article "Leave-no-trace camping" by its contributors, available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read on Wikivoyage · Contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Photo: Mirdsson2, CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons