Outdoor sports including hiking have become increasingly popular over the last several years thanks to Instagram making "gram worthy" spots more easily accessible to those who are otherwise not the outdoorsy type. Enter COVID-19 and you have more people outside than ever and most importantly, people who do not abide by the unspoken (or frequently spoken depending on which Facebook hiking groups you belong to) rule about LEAVE NO TRACE. This means everything you pack in, you pack out. If you are going to be taking the time to adventure in the great outdoors, please read up on the importance of "packing in, packing out" and don't head out to the trails unprepared. Maybe consider bringing an extra trash bag while you're at it.
Here's a disturbing number of articles regarding the trash people have left behind this year:
(MAINE) Appalachian Trail hikers in Maine reminded to pick up their trash
(TEXAS) Trinity River trash buildup was already a huge challenge. COVID-19 hasn't helped.
(WASHINGTON) Seeking escape from COVID-19, visitors to state trail's, parks leave loads of trash
(VIRGINIA) Volunteers pick up trash in Lynchburg parks, trails
(IDAHO) Amid pandemic boom, rangers grapple with excess litter, trail waste
(OREGON) 'Disregard for our state'; Trash, human waste left along Oregon coastal and forest trails
(SOUTH CAROLINA) Litter clean-ups finding more masks among the trash
(NEW HAMPSHIRE) More than 100 volunteers cart trash out of White Mountain National Forest
(COLORADO) More hikers, more problems: Keeping our Colorado trails beautiful during a hiking surge
(MICHIGAN) Pandemic brings on surge of visitors - and challenges - to local parks
(CONNECTICUT) Some towns clean up, Farmington shuts down river access point as surge in visitors creates trash problem
(WASHINGTON) Recreation becomes 'wreckreation' as careless outdoor adventures turn destructive, spark wildfires
(IDAHO) 'IT'S GROSS': Trash, human excrement at local recreation areas raising concerns
(ARIZONA) Trash and traffic increase in Oak Creek Canyon, worrying officials and nonprofits
(USA) National Parks are getting trashed during COVID-19, endangering surrounding communities
(MASSACHUSETTS) Cape Cod park officials see uptick in offenses due to coronavirus pandemic
(USA) More graffiti, weeds, and animals: Look at how National Parks sites changed in the pandemic
(NORTH CAROLINA) US Forest Service: Illegal garbage dumping, littering, camping can lead to fines
(USA) From national parks to the deep sea, plastic pollution is showing up wherever scientists look
(USA) 'More masks than jellyfish': Environmental groups worry about coronavirus waste in oceans
(WASHINGTON D.C.) Locals turned to the outdoors in record numbers as the pandemic took away usual haunts
(CALIFORNIA) Face masks and dirty diapers: Trash piles up at California lake shore, photo shows
(NEVADA) Trash problem growing at Lake Mead
(NEW MEXICO) 30,000 visitors leave tons of trash in Lincoln National Forest
(CALIFORNIA) Lake Tahoe tourists who 'aren't showing the same respect' creating prolific trash issues
(VERMONT) A different kind of summer atop High Peaks, where troubling trends persist
(MONTANA) Missoula seeing increase use of trails
(COLORADO) 30 pounds of beer bottles removed from Colorado 14er
(FLORIDA) Volunteers urged to scour the beaches for the 35th International Coastal Clean Up
(NEW JERSEY) Point Pleasant Beach was treated 'like an absolute toilet,' mayor says after thousands gather for pop-up party
(UTAH) Local hikers finding more garbage on trails as people head outdoors to escape cabin fever
(COLORADO) More forest users equal more trash, fires
(NEW MEXICO) Forest service seeing more trash, human waste left on trails
(USA) Trespassing, vandalism about in national parks affected by coronavirus
(ARIZONA) Arizona outdoors full of trash as people spend the pandemic outside
(PENNSYLVANIA) COVID-19 blamed for more crowds, trash at Devil's pool in Philadelphia
(INTERNATIONAL) Another side effect of COVID-19: The surge in plastic pollution
(NORTH CAROLINA) National parks getting trashed during COVID closures
(UTAH) Masks, other trash piling up at one of Utah's most popular national parks, park says
This list SHOULD make you angry. This is by no means all the articles about all the various different areas and this problem extends well beyond the United States and across the globe. Improperly discarded trash threatens ecosystems by contaminating water supplies, releasing chemicals into the soil, creates choking hazards for animals and more. Eventually, it makes its way back to us.
RESOURCES FOR HOW TO RECREATE OUTDOORS RESPONSIBLY:
Leave No Trace - Center for outdoor ethics