LESSON 2# BENEFITS AND SEVEN

PRINCIPLES OF OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES

THE BASICS:
• Know the regulations and special concerns for the area you’ll visit.
• Prepare for extreme weather, hazards, and emergencies.
• Schedule your trip to avoid times of high use.
• Visit in small groups. Split larger parties into smaller groups.
• Repackage food to minimize waste.
• Use a map and compass to eliminate the use of rock cairns, flagging,
or marking paint.
 WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO PLAN
AHEAD AND PREPARE
• • It helps ensure the safety of groups and individuals.
• • It prepares you to Leave No Trace and minimizes resource damage.
• • It contributes to accomplishing trip goals safely and enjoyably.
• • It increases self-confidence and opportunities for learning more
about nature.
 SIX ELEMENTS TO CONSIDER
WHEN PLANNING A TRIP
• Identify and record the goals (expectations) of your trip.
• Identify the skill and abilities of trip participants.
• Gain knowledge of the area you plan to visit from land managers, maps, and
literature.
• Choose equipment and clothing for comfort, safety, and Leave No Trace
qualities.
• Plan trip activities to match your goals, skills, and abilities.
• Evaluate your trip upon return and note changes you will make next time.
THE BASICS:
• Durable surfaces include established trails, campsites, rock, gravel, and dry grasses or
snow.
• Protect riparian areas by camping at least 200 feet from lakes and streams.
• Good campsites are found, not made. Altering a site is not necessary.
In popular areas
• Concentrate use on existing trails and campsites.
• Walk single file in the middle of the trail, even when wet or muddy.
• Keep campsites small. Focus activity in areas where vegetation is absent.
In undisturbed areas
• Disperse use to prevent the creation of campsites and trails.
• Avoid places where impacts are just beginning.
THE BASICS:
• Pack it in, pack it out. Inspect your campsite and rest areas for trash or spilled
food. Pack out all trash, leftover food, and litter. Burning trash is never
recommended.
• Deposit solid human waste in cat holes dug 6-8 inches deep at least 200 feet
from water, camp, and trails. Cover and disguise the cathole when finished.
• Bury toilet paper deep in a cat hole or pack the toilet paper out along with
hygiene products.
• To wash yourself or your dishes, carry water 200 feet away from streams or
lakes and use small amounts of biodegradable soap. Scatter strained dishwater.
HUMAN WASTE
• Currently, over one hundred protozoans, bacteria, and viruses have been identified in human
wastes, including Giardia lamblia, Cryptosporidium parvum, various coliform bacteria, and
viruses such as Hepatitis A. Proper disposal of human waste is important to avoid pollution
of water sources, avoid the negative implications of someone else finding it, minimize the
possibility of spreading disease and maximize the rate of decomposition.

• CAT HOLES
• LATRINES
• TOILET PAPER
• MENSTRUAL WASTE
• URINE
THE BASICS:

• Preserve the past: observe cultural or historic structures and

artifacts, but do not touch them.
• Leave rocks, plants, and other natural objects as you find
them.
• Avoid introducing or transporting non-native species.
• Do not build structures, furniture, or dig trenches.
 AVOID DAMAGING LIVE TREES AND PLANTS
• Avoid hammering nails into trees to hang things, hacking at them with hatchets and saws, or
carving into them. These actions can make the trees more susceptible to disease and cause
lasting damage. When tying items such as clotheslines or hammocks to a tree, 1-inch wide
straps should be utilized to avoid girdling the tree. Only utilize these items when large and
sturdy enough trees are available—cutting boughs for use as sleeping pads should be avoided
as it creates minimal benefit and maximum impact.

LEAVE NATURAL OBJECTS AND CULTURAL ARTIFACTS

• Natural objects of beauty or interest, such as antlers, petrified wood, or colored rocks, add to
the experience of an outdoor area and should be left so others can enjoy a sense of discovery.
Additionally, they may play a vital role in the ecosystem by providing essential nutrients,
habitat, or other benefits. These natural objects are also protected by law in national parks and
many other protected places.
THE BASICS:
• Campfires can cause lasting impacts on the environment. Use a
lightweight stove for cooking and enjoy a candle lantern for light.
• Use established fire rings, pans, or mound fires where fires are
permitted.
• Keep fires small. Use only sticks from the ground that can be broken
by hand.
• Burn all wood and coals to ash, put out campfires completely, then
scatter cool ashes.
THE BASICS:
• Observe wildlife from a distance. Do not follow or approach them.
• Never feed animals. Feeding wildlife damages their health, alters
natural behaviors, and exposes them to predators and other dangers.
• Control pets at all times, or leave them at home.
• Avoid wildlife during sensitive times: mating, nesting, raising young,
or winter.
THE BASICS:

• Respect others and protect the quality of their experience.

• Be courteous. Yield to other users on the trail.
• Greet riders and ask which side of the trail to move to when
encountering pack stock.
• Take breaks and camp away from trails and others.
• Let nature’s sounds prevail. Avoid loud voices and noises.