National parks are among the most visited places in the world, capable of enchanting millions of tourists with their pure beauty. There are more than 1,000 national parks in different countries. Although in a few decades the number of visitors could even double, their problems are still significant. It is necessary that as many people as possible be aware of the situation and the difficulties that protect a piece of nature and all the species on Earth face.
Before visiting a park, it is necessary to understand the essential principles of nature and to know the national laws that protect it, especially the specific laws of the various managers of the individual parks. This is intended as a useful guide for those who want to visit and appreciate nature and tourist destinations. I will try to show you the solutions to many common mistakes that can be made in all national parks. I wish you all a good time in this marvel of nature that you want to visit.
Lack of Preparation
One of the most common mistakes made by people when visiting national and state parks across the world is a lack of preparation. Research is a critical aspect of preparation as it allows guests to know what kind of park they are visiting, what permits and information are useful or necessary to have, and what rules are in place for visitors. A solid number of people are inclined to leap into a leisurely national park adventure or visit to an outdoor area, opting to skip this step and head right on to the camping checklist. Yet, their unfortunate absence of knowledge is usually a hindrance to enjoying the entire experience. A quick skim of park regulations and codes of conduct could further alleviate the possibility of panic and frustration.
This lack of awareness breeds hasty overindulgence in the physical sense as well. It is unattractive for a guest to stagger off of Grandeur Point, bewildered at having underestimated the extent of its seventy-eight mile belt of sheer cliff and unaware of any nearby potable water sources, let alone the available restroom facilities. Before entering a national park, patrons should be armed with every bit of detail available about potential weather variations, zones of wildlife, matters of inconvenience, official trail maps, acquired cabin rentals or beach concessions, and other important notes to enhance the value of their experience. The documents and pieces of equipment one decides to include in their day pack may be derived from many of these points of interest.
Not Checking Park Regulations and Guidelines
The “Rules and Regulations” section of any national park’s website likely has low search traffic. This is unfortunate because the failure to review and absorb this critical information should be first on the list of mistakes. Many, if not most, park rules pertain to conduct so fundamentally programmed into one’s sense of environmental respect and safety that the casual visitor does not think them through. People break the rules not because they are bad but because they haven’t thought through the ramifications of their actions, often in a frantic effort to both escape the banal passive experience of observing an ecosystem and to share in a human drama.
All too often, a visitor learns too late that he or she was not to approach that meadow, that campfire was not appropriate, or that they should not have tried that one trail they did. In other words, prior to planning and executing a national park or wildland visit, spend the due diligence to learn the rules pertinent to open trail closures, fires, wildlife interaction, and the requirement of a guide. The only “standard practice” for visiting a national park, forest, or refuge is a little research into written regulations before planning your trip. If you don’t invest some of your time to review the rules for the park or natural place you are visiting, you put resources at risk and may face some serious legal consequences. Additionally, if the legal repercussions don’t happen, you may also be physically or ecologically threatened.
Underestimating the Terrain and Weather Conditions
The visitor numbers for the Czech national parks are rising, but the risk of being underprepared when entering the protected areas tends to increase as well. Unfamiliarity with the park specifics can contribute to unacceptable behavior leading to the inability to protect the surroundings in the long term. The objective is to identify the underestimations made by visitors to the Krkonoš and Bohemian Switzerland National Parks. The main mistakes made by the visitors to both Czech national parks include underestimating the terrain and the weather conditions. Many visitors come under the impression that the Krkonoš are highlands and underestimate the terrain common to mountainous areas. This is perhaps due to a lack of knowledge about the characteristics of the terrain. Many of the visitors to Bohemian Switzerland National Park are also not aware of the terrain – its characteristic rocks sloping upwards.
The behavioral underestimations described above mainly influence personal safety with a potential long-term effect on the reasons why people visit. More visitors tend to go out for a walk within nature than were expected by the National Park Administration. The freedom of movement within the territory is something else that visitors of the Krkonoš National Park underestimate. It is important to provide valuable information about potential threats to the visitors to ensure their safety when walking in the protected areas. They should not overrate the advice available and be prepared to face unexpected conditions.
Disrespecting Wildlife
Visitors frequently underestimate the necessity of keeping their distance from park wildlife. Close encounters and attempts to feed animals can result in dangerous situations for people, but most notably for the animals themselves. Approaching animals habituated to people within or near developed areas may disrupt their natural activities. Feeding can have serious consequences as well. Access to human food leaves wild animals more vulnerable to predators and means animals will not forage for themselves. Since foraging and hunting are natural behaviors and necessary activities for wildlife, depriving animals of the ability to perform these tasks can endanger their safety. To avoid possible bear and other wildlife encounters, visitors should observe wildlife from a safe distance and avoid feeding them.
National park visitors can help protect animals and their homes by minimizing their impacts. Animals have a right to maintain territories and pathways that are safe from people. When humans approach or interfere with wildlife habitats, this changes the normal behaviors needed by these animals. Once it becomes clear that people do not understand wildlife safety, animals suffer because they come to depend on people to fulfill all their needs. Animals are not tourists and do not always want to be around people. They avoid people so they can look for food and raise their young in peace. If people get too close to wildlife, animals will have to move away, which spoils the fun for everyone. Wild animals should always be treated with respect, kept away from people as they want, and left alone.
Approaching or Feeding Animals
Often, if an animal approaches visitors, people might not be aware of the fact that the animals can be dangerous. However, attempting to approach animals will only cause them stress, and animals might then react defensively or aggressively. Also, when humans feed animals, visitors no longer get to see their natural behavior but rather the creatures’ determined attempts at obtaining food, disturbing natural visitor experiences. Learning to find food is something young animals have to learn, and feeding young animals causes them never to be able to live independently. Last but not least, if an animal accidentally feels threatened because visitors approach, it can result in an accident—possibly with a dangerous animal.
According to estimates, around 30 people are injured by deer in Germany every year. Most of these accidents are not the result of traffic: many people are hurt in national parks or when they approach wild animals out of interest. Not many people know this fact, and becoming acquainted with the consequences might lead them to consider a visit to nature reserves differently. Of course, an educational campaign in schools and via the media is important so that children are likewise made aware of the consequences of such behavior. In addition, the staff of protected area administrations can raise the topic in guided tours and, in this way, establish a respectful coexistence with nature’s most useful tourist attractions, animals.
Leaving a Trace
One of the basic rules of our national parks is to leave no trace. Visitors, whether by failing to pack up their own waste on a hike or by collecting plants, fail to realize that such trace can be lasting and visible for everyone who comes after them, now and in the future. Part of what is known as Leave No Trace principles, the ideas are an abiding thread through many park visits, asking us to do things such as planning in advance and respecting wildlife. Many visitors may simply choose not to acknowledge these principles, or may not grasp the degree to which their connection to the surroundings distorts it. For others, making waves can be knowingly defiant, a bash on rules and anything wild. Disrespect becomes a form of entitlement.
There is also the point that leaving a trace accumulates in the park over time. People may litter, begin to alter their backyard spots, write their names, or build cairns to the top. The problematic behavior always draws further. Once visitors depart, the next one has a greater chance of being just as sloppy or inappropriate, all the more so then for the following person, unless an abiding aid comes in to sweep the land. This concept leads not only to ecological blunting impacts, but also to the likelihood that more and more visitors who libertinely sample species and other natural scenes may risk wearing them down. This has the potential to discredit claims about the parks’ pristine wildest sights. So by confining disrespectful journeys, some biodiversity enthusiasts aim to reserve and restore its intact and amiable character. Knowing less about such harm lessens a park visitor’s personal understanding. Ingenuity is never approved.
Improper Waste Disposal
First, and perhaps foremost, is the disregard many visitors in the outdoors have when it comes to throwing their trash away responsibly. Oftentimes, a visit to a park can be marred by a large amount of litter left by those who did not feel it necessary to pack out what they had brought in. In addition to being unsightly, there is potential for the trash left behind to have a detrimental impact on some of the wildlife in a park. An animal may mistake a plastic bag for food, eat it, and wind up choking to death. In addition, visitors who take the extra effort to pack out whatever trash they have—typically, as the saying goes, leaving only footprints—constitute a significant help to the park staff, whose budget and manpower are perpetually problematic. There’s little doubt that education is one of the keys to more responsible behaviors by those who visit our national parks. Only by knowing the potential consequences of an action might a person be persuaded to alter it, and the picture of the dead bird with the plastic in its stomach is one of a number of possible effects of a lack of respect for the environment.
The visitor knows that something unusual and particularly worthwhile will be found there, and yet this does not make him pause to consider the small effort that it might entail to take away with him what he brings in. It is my hope that the readers of this essay, and the thousands more who visit parks and natural areas this year, may demonstrate a far different attitude and show their commitment to being a good green tourist. In the end, tourists who love and respect the place they visit do the most to perpetuate it.