Simple easily understood PSA from the folks at Arizona State Parks about visitors creating cairns (stacking rocks). Hiking around wilderness areas and stacking a few rocks to take a picture for your socials might seem like harmless activity but it not. This is especially apparent in the age of social media where the activity has seemingly exploded in popularity with rock stacks littering the precious few pristine places remaining in our country.
Rock staking does have a traditional purpose beyond ascetics and have been used as waypoints for travelers to navigate otherwise unmarked areas but the cairns we are talking about discouraging are purely ornamental.
There are three primary impacts of stacking rocks as outlined by the non-profit LEAVE NO TRACE:
–Ecological impact: Any time a rock is removed from its embedded location; insects, aquatic macroinvertebrates, fish, and animals can be forced from their hiding places and homes.
-Erosion Impact: Removing rocks from sand, sediment, and soils generates a faster rate of erosion.
–Aesthetic Impact: The interrupted visual cues of visitor created rock stacks takes away from what is natural and inserts a human reminder that the visitor is not alone.
ARIZONA STATE PARKS:
Cairn” about parks means not stacking rocks.
Some FAQs about rock stacking:
-Aren’t rock stacks used as trail markers?
Rock stacks or cairns are used purposefully by some land managers to mark trails, yes. New rock stacks built for fun or art by visitors can confuse hikers looking for legitimate trail markers. In our state parks, we have trail marking signage to help hikers on their adventures so cairns are not needed.
-Just one little rock stack is okay, right?
While one may make for a beautiful photograph, rock stacking often has a domino effect. When one person builds a rock stack, others often follow suit. Slide Rock State Park receives nearly half a million visitors annually, and rock stacks are often grouped near each other. The combined effect has a negative impact.
–Is it really that big of a deal?
It’s a big deal to that which is small—you never know what larval stages you could be interrupting for a species.
–Are you telling me I should go around and kick rock stacks?
Nope! You can leave that job to employees who work in the field. Our only request to visitors is to please not create new rock stacks. As we mentioned, there are functional, official cairns outside of Arizona’s state parks that hikers rely on, and there are also culturally-sensitive sites you don’t want to disrupt. The goal is to recreate responsibly. Thank you for caring!
-Doesn’t knocking the rocks over do as much harm as stacking them?
No. Our rangers are on the creek throughout each day, disassembling the rock stacks and keeping the area clean and cared for. The stacks aren’t standing long enough to become new habitat, and removing them means others won’t be encouraged to build new ones.
ARIZONA STATE PARKS LEAVE WHAT YOU FIND POLICY:
You’ve heard the saying…” Take only pictures, leave only footprints.” This phrase holds a powerful meaning and can be a mantra used to ensure you leave the least impact as possible while enjoying the outdoors. This is especially true for any artifacts, plants, or animals you find in the parks!
- Refrain from building structures such as cairns in the parks or on the trail
- Don’t introduce invasive species. Quagga mussels, for example, are easily transported from one body of water to the next. Take precautions to reduce the chance of transfer.
- Never remove historical artifacts from where they are found. Please admire them but leave them there for the next person to enjoy.
- Don’t remove plants or wildlife (besides legally caught fish) from the park.
- Exception: Northern pike, a predatory fish species found in Fool Hollow Lake, can decimate the populations of other fish in the lake. We hope that anglers will keep these fish for their delicious white, flaky meat and to protect the other sportfish in the lake.
