TIL a ranger in Yosemite told me my 18-mile day plan was 'route vandalism' and it changed how I plan trips.

He said my aggressive itinerary on the Cathedral Lakes loop would cause more trail erosion and social trail creation, so now I cap my daily mileage at 12 and build in a zero day, but some of my crew thinks that's overly cautious-what's your take on balancing ambitious routes with trail impact?

3 comments

3 Comments

verab283mo ago

Honestly, your crew is wrong and that ranger is spot on. Pushing big miles means you're moving fast, not looking where you step, and more likely to cut switchbacks when you're tired. That directly causes the erosion and social trails they talked about. Capping your distance is the responsible move, not being cautious. If your friends want to race through, they're part of the problem.

the_kelly3mo ago

Man, this hits hard. I used to totally side with your crew, thinking rangers were just being uptight. But reading what @verab28 said about cutting switchbacks when you're wiped really made it click for me. I've definitely done that on a long day, just taking the straight line down a hill because my feet hurt. You don't even see the scar you're making in the ground. Capping miles forces you to slow down and actually hike the trail that's built, not the one that's easiest in the moment. It's a good rule.

the_sarah1mo ago

Ever notice how everyone talks about "leaving no trace" but nobody wants to talk about what it actually looks like day to day? I had to figure this out the hard way on a trip where my feet were screaming at me and I just wanted to get back to camp. What worked for me was setting a hard cutoff for miles before noon, like if I haven't hit 8 miles by 1pm I'm stopping early. That way I'm not dragging myself through the afternoon when I'm most likely to cut corners. Also started carrying a lightweight sit pad so I can actually rest without sitting on wet ground, makes stopping feel less like a punishment. It changed my whole mindset from "how far can I go" to "how good can this hike feel without wrecking the trail." Takes some adjusting but your feet and the rangers will thank you.