Trail Litter

I've been meaning to raise this issue for years.

Back in the 70s and 80s litter was rampant in the mountains of New England. I'm not talking about places nearby metropolitan areas, but the Whites, the Greens, the ADKs, Maine. It got so bad that I would bring two plastic trash bags with me, one from the bottom and one for the top half of a trail. My bags were full, honestly. You name it , it was in there. reminded me of litter on a city street. Beer cans, soda cans bottles, empty fuel canisters,, food wrappers, boxes, cigarette butts (bountiful), yes cigarettes, half eaten food,abandonded camping gear and on it goes. And I'm just talking about what's on the trail. We've come a long way baby. I don't even bring bags any longer. So congratulations to everyone for taking the pack it in, pack it out movement seriously. I can actually enjoy my hike rather than feel like the garbage man.

I was at some forest training last weekend, and one fellow has become focused on a "new" kind of littler "micro trash". The little tear offs from wrappers and the like. So that's what it comes to. That's great! I will say however, that the rangers and trail maintainers still spend time picking up litter, but not near as much.

What are your observations? What do you see on the trail?

On a hike through the Bonds and Twins last weekend I picked up a couple empty water bottles and a beer as well as a couple assorted tear-offs you mentioned. But overall the trails looked very clear of trash.

It seems like to me that there are always some of those tear off pieces like you mention, but not many of them (in the whites). I'll pick them up when I see them and toss them in a pocket. The more popular the peak, the more likely you are to find that bigger items like water bottles and beer/soda cans. Still not normally a large number though. On really busy places like Monadnock, I've brought back tons of different things and some of them quite odd. One day I picked up two frisbees on Monadnock where Keene State students tried to throw them from the summit (likely KSC students, based on the logo on the frisbee being for a dorm building). I've also brought back pieces of kites, sweaters, towels, and even a 6 inch round thermometer like on the side of your house. My last trip to Monadnock had me hiking down with both side pockets on my pack filled with larger items squished down. It amazes me sometimes how people can carry a full water bottle up, but not an empty one back down.

Its nothing compared to when I started hiking in the whites and I was on the tail end of the boom. The usage in the backcountry was much higher. At the more popular areas with attractions like streams and waterfalls, there would be bootleg camps for 1/4 to 1/3rd of mile and most of them would usually have plenty of trash, beer cans and bottles were everywhere. I encounter these sites on occasion when bushwhacking.

My pet peeve are GU type electrolyte pouches, I find them along many trails that have a lot of trail runners although orange peels and pistachio shells are right up there.

sdways01 said:

My last trip to Monadnock had me hiking down with both side pockets on my pack filled with larger items squished down. It amazes me sometimes how people can carry a full water bottle up, but not an empty one back down.

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My last hike to Monadnock, circa 1990 I got to the top, found about 50 people, a case of beer, intoxicate people and and a boombox blasting. I headed straight back down. That's why it was my last.

Most of the litter I see is on trails that see a lot of winter use. I suspect it is things that are dropped accidentally while hiking that vanish. I also see things people tried to burn in a fire pit (e.g. cans). The biggest mess I've seen is the old burned out Rocky Branch shelter though. Hopefully that gets cleaned up soon. Second on the list would be the remnants of the old Pemi bridge a couple years back.

I suspect that people are leaving less trash, and that lots of people are good about picking it up for the rest of us.

I think very few people litter on purpose anymore. Most of what I find is litter that has blown out of someone's hand or pack. I picked up a water bottle on Lowe's Path this past weekend on my way down and often pick up "micro" litter. I'm a firm believer in the idea that people are much more protective of a clean place than one that already has litter. Either way, glad it's not bad. Every once in a while I'll hit a trail that has clearly had a careless group hike come along - that's usually obvious....and rare.

Raven said:

I think very few people litter on purpose anymore. Most of what I find is litter that has blown out of someone's hand or pack. I picked up a water bottle on Lowe's Path this past weekend on my way down and often pick up "micro" litter. I'm a firm believer in the idea that people are much more protective of a clean place than one that already has litter. Either way, glad it's not bad. Every once in a while I'll hit a trail that has clearly had a careless group hike come along - that's usually obvious....and rare.

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I'd have to disagree with that to some extent, especially if we include "biodegradable litter" like banana and orange peels and the like. I've seen piles of orange peels on several summits already so far this year. Yes it will eventually go away but it is an eyesore to reach a summit and have a pile of crap on it. And toilet paper/paper towels at every small clearing is clearly no accident and is a very common occurrence on just about any popular trail. There is no effort to even hide it behind a tree or stuff it under a rock. It's just wipe and toss right on the trail. No big deal.

It's funny this thread came up because I was just thinking on my hike last weekend that there is already a good amount of litter on trails and it is just now getting warm. Makes we wonder/worry about what peak season will bring. You can find trash on even the most remote trails now. Very discouraging.

I wonder if manufactures know how many pieces of their wrappers slip out of people's hands? I know - they'd say that's not their responsibility. I'm especially upset by the TP. I don't understand why it is so hard to bring a baggie to slip it into. Is a little poo going to leach through the bag? Will some dampness from pee on the TP show on your face if it is in your pocket, even without a baggie? I've been made fun of on a Facebook page for complaining about orange peels left along the trail. They said it would decompose. That's not the point, is it.

Back in the flatlands most litter seems to be branded "Dunkin Donuts"

When I lived in the small city of Glens Falls, most of the litter was branded "Budweiser" and it was piles of broken glass on the sidewalk every Sunday morning...

erugs said:

I wonder if manufactures know how many pieces of their wrappers slip out of people's hands?

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I thought it was a great idea when I first saw Clif's "Litter Leash" on their energy jell shot packets. Making it so the part that you pull off to open it stays with the packaging. It'd be great if more companies could incorporate something like that.

I think the litter problem now is a lot worse then in the 80's. The most common litter are orange peels and items that are assumed to be "not litter". I do see those small tabs as well, I make it a point to stick mine back in the pack so I know I didn't drop it. I agree, Cliff Shots have a nice way of keeping it fixed, but I love Power Gel vanilla so I just watch it. One thing and this will most likely cause me to receive grief, I do not pick up litter I see. I'm not 100% sure why, I can only say, I didn't bring it in, I'm not packing someone's trash out. To me the larger issue is trailheads. I won't even walk into the woods near a trailhead for fear of stepping in piles of crap, disgusting. This is a direct result of the Forest Service stubborn stance on not providing Porta Potties at least at popular trailheads. All the money from parking passes should support this, as there overall expenses, drop considerably in the winter season. I associate the litter issue with the rescue issue. You cannot teach someone who knows nothing about hiking and decides to go, all they need to know to be safe. Nor can you teach a bunch of yahoo's who are more concerned with raising hell, that the land is to be protected.

The carry in and carry out message is certainly working well, though not perfectly. About as well as one might hope. We see very few containers and suchlike trash along the trails of Cardigan. What is needed is more education for dog owners. They let Fido do the #2 business right by the trail, and they leave it there rather than take it into the woods to bury it or bag it and take it home. When patrolling trails with a shovel I have the habit of burying the dog doo a few yards into the woods, although that gets old quickly. What I wonder is this: are the plastic bags of their best friend's product biodegradable or not? I see a few along the trail or sometimes stashed on a rock on the trail. Are the humans going to pack that home with them, or can we bury that too? It may be time to put up yet another (sigh!) educational sign for the caninophiles before the state decides to forbid dogs on Mt. Cardigan.

sierra said:

I think the litter problem now is a lot worse then in the 80's. The most common litter are orange peels and items that are assumed to be "not litter". I do see those small tabs as well, I make it a point to stick mine back in the pack so I know I didn't drop it. I agree, Cliff Shots have a nice way of keeping it fixed, but I love Power Gel vanilla so I just watch it. One thing and this will most likely cause me to receive grief, I do not pick up litter I see. I'm not 100% sure why, I can only say, I didn't bring it in, I'm not packing someone's trash out. To me the larger issue is trailheads. I won't even walk into the woods near a trailhead for fear of stepping in piles of crap, disgusting. This is a direct result of the Forest Service stubborn stance on not providing Porta Potties at least at popular trailheads. All the money from parking passes should support this, as there overall expenses, drop considerably in the winter season. I associate the litter issue with the rescue issue. You cannot teach someone who knows nothing about hiking and decides to go, all they need to know to be safe. Nor can you teach a bunch of yahoo's who are more concerned with raising hell, that the land is to be protected.

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You bring up an interesting point about whether or not to pick up other people's trash - what is the right thing to do? Should I have to stop, take my pack off and stuff junk in it every few hundred feet and ruin my day when I have little free time as it is to enjoy the outdoors? That's not how I want to spend my day off, picking up the slack for other people's inconsiderate behavior. And on the other hand, if I leave it, others will see trash and think it's OK to just throw it on the ground when they're done with it. And if no one ever picks it up it just gets worse. Kudos to those of you that do stop, interrupt your day, and pick up others garbage.

Sometimes I do pick it up and sometimes I don't (and I never pick up other's toilet paper for hygiene purposes). My first impulse is to grab it because it annoys me but then I get more annoyed by the fact that I have to do it and shouldn't have to in the first place. Things that I can see being "accidents" like the tabs off of a power bar, etc I'll usually grab but stuff that is obviously just some clueless and inconsiderate person I usually leave in the hopes that it will piss other people off too and maybe, just maybe the actual depositer of the litter is around when someone (preferably me) looses their marbles about it. I think maybe 1/3 or less of the trash we find is accidental. As with all other facets of life, there is a certain percentage of people that are only concerned with their own convenience and no amount of training will alter their behavior. We see that everywhere now, not just on the trails.

Creag Nan Drochaid said:

What is needed is more education for dog owners. They let Fido do the #2 business right by the trail, and they leave it there rather than take it into the woods to bury it or bag it and take it home. When patrolling trails with a shovel I have the habit of burying the dog doo a few yards into the woods, although that gets old quickly. What I wonder is this: are the plastic bags of their best friend's product biodegradable or not? I see a few along the trail or sometimes stashed on a rock on the trail. Are the humans going to pack that home with them, or can we bury that too? It may be time to put up yet another (sigh!) educational sign for the caninophiles before the state decides to forbid dogs on Mt. Cardigan.

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I too have seen an increase in these "doggie bags" being place along trails. Is it that people just don't understand that you not only have to bag "it", but carry it out? Or is in biodegradable? Which if it is, then what purpose does it serve. I love dogs, had ones most of my life, but my son is allergic to pet dander, which will trigger his asthma. I get many a crooked look when someones dog comes running up to us and I ask that they keep their dog away from us. Owners response is most likely, "he's friendly", to which I response "but I'm not". We pass many well controlled dogs, but some people don't really have control of their dog and just expect others to deal with their pets jumping up on people & blocking the trail.

DayTrip said:

You bring up an interesting point about whether or not to pick up other people's trash - what is the right thing to do?

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I pick it up, usually on the way down. Otherwise it sets the example that it's ok to continue to litter.

I draw the line at biohazards - tissues, toilet paper, diaper wipes, condoms (shudder), drugs. One colleague has a "make it go away" right there. He takes a stick and just rams it down into the ground.

Creag Nan Drochaid said:

are the plastic bags of their best friend's product biodegradable or not?

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Dogs got so bad in our town that they have bags at the trailheads. Only problem is the lunkheads who bag it, tire of carrying it and chuck it into the woods. I bushwhack and I've seen these sitting there for more than a season. So if they are biodegradeable, it takes a long time. More unsightly than the doo, but that's another issue.

I speculate that I find trash on the trail in direct ratio to how much a trail is used. Last year on Elephant I found not a hint of trash. Pretty much the same on all of the Maine trails. But exitin out the wilderness trail from a Bonds junket I found a full case of empty natty lites in a ditch. There is always TP on the popular trails and the occasional water bottle or GU pack and the like. Still seems like there is less trash around today than in the past except for TP. Regardless I still carry a bag for garbage that I find on and around the trail. I figure if I can see it I should grab it and pack it out. Why let someone else's experience be spoiled by trash? In the end it makes me feel just a bit superior to the litterer and my ego blows right up for being a do gooder.

Tim Horn said:

I speculate that I find trash on the trail in direct ratio to how much a trail is used.

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The closer to a metropolitan area, the greater the trash factor. Up in the north woods of maine the only trail trash I find are dead animals....