Leave No Trace Master Educator

NOLS Leave No Trace Master Educator course

NOLS Southwest, Tucson, Arizona

My first lessons were hard learned in Leave No Trace principles and ethics. I was accepted into the Master Educator Course and within a few days I was expected to be 3000 miles away from where I was to take a class in the Sonoran desert. With a short notice and a can-do attitude, I left New York to drive across the United States to Tucson Arizona to participate and learn from guides and leaders at the NOLS Southwest Headquarters.

Principle 1:

Plan Ahead and Prepare.

Planning ahead and preparing is all about foresight and precaution. Making sure you have the things you need in spite of accidents or difficult circumstances is important when considering the protection of your personal well-being and the well-being of others. (Driving 3000 miles in 3 days was a lack of planning ahead on my part.) Although a mad rush to cross the country was fun in hindsight, I could have made for a much more comfortable road trip if I had planned to take this course a few months in advance.

Day number one was spent on the NOLS campgrounds practicing ‘Planning Ahead and Preparing’. Our group of 13 all met each other, planned out our 21 mile hike, made sure we had proper gear for the temperature fluctuations for desert days and nights, and then spent the first evening camping. I spent my evening under the towering Saguaros listening to the howls of the coyotes echoing through the whispering sands.

On the morning of day number two, we were dropped off by shuttle at a trailhead in Saguaro National Park. Before we began the hike, we started with the first of our peer-reviewed lectures on each of the principles.

Tucson Arizona hiking in Sonoran desert saguaro national park

Principle 2:

Travel and Camp on Durable Surfaces

“Land management agencies construct trails to provide identifiable routes that concentrate foot and stock traffic. Constructed trails are themselves an impact on the land; however, they are a necessary response to the fact that people travel through natural areas.” - LNT

In our case, the dusty trails weaving through 50 types of cacti were our ideal surfaces. We passed through the occasional wash with slick rock and water streams.

Principle 3:

Dispose of waste Properly

Disposing of waste, whether human or pet or just general garbage, is important to the protection of not only the natural world, but to human health in nature settings. In regards to human and pet waste, cat holes (a 6-8 inch deep hole dug at least 200 feet away from any trails or waterways or camps) are the widely accepted method.

water in saguaro national park, camping sonoran desert

Principle 4:

Leave What You Find

“Leave areas as you found them. Do not dig trenches for tents or construct lean-tos, tables, chairs or other rudimentary improvements. If you clear an area of surface rocks, twigs or pine cones replace these items before leaving.” - LNT

When we arrived at our first campsite we completed a walk through to assess the area and noticed that an entirely new area of grass had been flattened. We assumed that it was to fit more tents in this one specific area even though there were plenty of campsites close by. Minimizing site alterations is important to keeping wild places wild while maintaining natural areas are still in tact for both wildlife and humans that visit in the future.

Tent camping in saguaro national park, sonoran desert, arizona, leave no trace, NOLS

Principle 5:

Minimize Campfire Impacts

The most prominent question when building a fire in the backcountry, is whether or not you should build it in the first place. Deserts can be incredibly dry and in our case we had a few days of '“wet” weather prior to our 5 day trek that would minimize any potential risk. Potential fire damage is a real concern so it is of utmost importance that fires be attended to, fueled properly and safely, and extinguished completely before leaving the area.

backcountry cooking whisper light stove camp fire sonoran desert arizona saguaro national park

“The best place to build a fire is within an existing fire ring in a well-placed campsite. Keep the fire small and burning only for the time you are using it. Allow wood to burn completely to ash. Put out fires with water, not dirt. Dirt may not completely extinguish the fire. Avoid building fires next to rock outcrops where the black scars will remain for many years.” - LNT

We set our fire within a fire ring at the Juniper Basin Campsite on the hike to Tanque Verde.

backcountry cooking whisperlight stove in the sonoran desert arizona

Principle 6:

Respect Wildlife

For me, wildlife experiences have enhanced my love for the outdoors that I never knew I could have. From seeing breaching whales and pods of dolphins, to deer with antlers the size of my arms, and listening to the desert Coyotes on this trip in particular; wildlife acting as themselves is an experience like no other. As a photographer who mainly stays behind the camera, it’s easy to stay a safe distance away but I have seen my fair share of danger and recklessness. Over the last few years I have seen video after video of humans interacting poorly with animals. I have seen children falling into zoo enclosures, (RIP Harambe), hikers encroaching on mountain lion territory leading to a chase, and even other photographers leaving store-bought chicken out so they could photograph a red fox.

All of these interactions change animal behavior and could have been avoided if more people:

Avoid sensitive habitats,
Do not feed wildlife
Control your children… or even pets!

Authentic interactions with wildlife are incredible to experience and forced interactions, whether dangerous or not, should be avoided.

Principle 7:

Be Considerate Of Others

”One of the most important components of outdoor ethics is to maintain courtesy toward other visitors..” - LNT

Much like avoiding unpleasant wildlife interactions, we should do our best to avoid unpleasant interactions with other visitors. For me personally, nature is a place for me to decompress and not be stressed about the day to day activities of being a human lol. Excessive noise, like loud music, yelling, or uncontrolled pets can take away the appeal and ruin an experience for somebody in the outdoors.

While some people enjoy large groups as a way to bond and share experiences, the feeling of peaceful solitude is important to others.