How to Do Natural Wonders on Instagram Without Being a Member
In March, the mountains of Lake Elsinore in California experienced an annual bloom of fiery orange poppies – and Instagram users flocked there with cameras and smartphones in hand and ruined it all.
As the small town filled with visitors, people took pictures among the fields of flowers, trampling and collecting them in the process. “This natural phenomenon is unlike anything we’ve seen before,” wrote one Instagram user, taking a picture of himself standing among the poppies. (As reported by the New York Times , the city eventually intervened after a Lake Elsinore official was hit by a car and a visitor was attacked by a rattlesnake.)
It is this behavior – “influencers” flooding the once pristine environment to capture the perfect selfie – that prompted the anti-influencer to create his own Instagram account: Public Lands Hate You , which has just under 50,000 followers. The account owner, who wished to remain anonymous but shared that he is an engineer with an environmental background, created an Instagram account based on his own social media and outdoor experiences.
“Over the past five years, I have noticed a marked increase in abuse and disrespect for our public lands, which coincides with the rise of Instagram,” he said in an email. “The final straw was that I was traveling with friends last summer, and one weekend I saw people carving initials on fragile alpine trees, making fires where they can’t, and not putting them out completely.”
The account itself is a collage of photographs demonstrating these destructive actions, from superbloom photos to selfies with animals (another harmful practice); he also notes photographers. For him, this is an attempt to educate them.
“I would say that of the pictures I comment on, perhaps 75% get some kind of feedback from the person who posted the content,” he said. “In [some] cases, the owner pushes them against their heels and insists that they have done nothing wrong, despite the fact that their photographs clearly show that they are breaking the law.”
In the era of Instagram and selfie sticks, there are several reasons why you shouldn’t mark your location or go astray when visiting public lands or national parks.
Always share photos responsibly
According to PLHU, when you visit a lesser-known public park, you shouldn’t be so quick to mark its location; Many conservationists argue that posting precise locations on platforms like Instagram will cause tourists to disrupt ecosystems and animal habitats for photos, as is the case with the super bloom craze. Back in November, the Jackson Hole Travel and Tourism Board in Wyoming asked visitors to stop tagging its forests and lakes after an influx of Instagram users selling nutritional supplements and photographing engagement there, the New York Times wrote .
Use general geotags instead. “States, counties and parks, not specific places like a waterfall or mountain peak,” said PLHU. “Share photos that show people are responsible and respect their land.”
Stay on the way
If you’re ever tempted to turn off the official lanes in a public park to avoid the crowd or take a picture, you should reconsider. As the US National Park Service notes on its website , you can damage or kill plant and animal species, which will affect the ecosystem of the area. During the government shutdown earlier this year, several national parks were badly hit by illegal camping and the use of SUVs, causing irreparable damage .
Not to mention, it’s dangerous. In Yellowstone National Park, visitors who go astray are vulnerable to injury and death caused by wandering or falling near hot springs or geysers. People taking selfies seem to be even more oblivious to their surroundings: as of October 2018, 259 people have died while taking selfies.
Stay out of the wild
According to PLHU, you should never feed or approach wild animals to get the best shot. “The problem with approaching and feeding animals is that they eventually start to lose their natural fear of humans,” he said. “At first glance, this may not seem like a problem, but if you dig deeper, many problems will become apparent. When we give human food to a wild animal, that animal begins to associate humans as a food source. Instead of having a healthy fear of humans, wild animals begin to approach humans in hopes of getting light food. ”
For example, in California’s Yosemite National Park, black bears that rely on human food often lose their fear of humans and become aggressive when they lose access to food, putting both ourselves and ourselves in danger.
“This means that they spend more time than usual on [the roads], and many of them are injured or killed every year by cars. Others wander outside of our protected national parks and become easy prey for hunters as they no longer see humans as a threat. ”
In Yellowstone National Park, it is recommended that you keep a minimum of 100 yards from bears and wolves and 25 yards from all other animals, including bison and elk. If you find yourself getting too close to the animal, you should also use the PLHU rule of thumb: If the animal is far enough away, you should be able to cover it with your thumb. If you cannot cover it, then it is too close.
Respect other visitors
Public lands are communal spaces; Therefore, you should be aware of the impact you have after visiting a national park or other lands that are vulnerable to Instagram tourism. The Center for Outdoor Ethics offers several guidelines that you should consider on your website:
- Before passing others, inform them of your presence and proceed with caution.
- Consider how the excessive noise generated by things such as smartphones or headphones can affect other people in the vicinity.
- Redefine brightly colored clothing and tents to reduce visual impact (interfering with the perception of others). Bring items in earthy tones instead.
- Learn the rules of conduct for dogs before bringing your own; some parks prohibit them or require them to be tethered. (And pick up their poop.)
And leave any place in the same or better condition than you found it, which includes proper disposal of garbage and human feces and minimizing exposure to campfires and sewage.
If you’d like to learn more about how to reduce your environmental impact, read the Leave No Trace Principles of the Open Air Ethics Center on its website or on the Public Lands Hate You blog . And maybe revisit this selfie.