{{Short description|Socially acceptable behaviors on recreational trails}} thumb|Off-road vehicle impact in SW Utah.

'''Trail ethics''' define appropriate ranges of behavior for hikers on a public trail. It is similar to both environmental ethics and human rights in that it deals with the shared interaction of humans and nature. There are multiple agencies and groups that support and encourage ethical behavior on trails.<ref>{{cite web | title = TREAD LIGHTLY | work = We did not inherit the earth from our parents, we are borrowing it from our children. | publisher = Cedar City Field Office, Bureau of Land Management | date = | url = http://www.ut.blm.gov/cedarcity_fo/cedarpages/blm_ccfo_tread_lightly.htm | format = Web | doi = | accessdate = 2006-11-11 |archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20061104115437/http://www.ut.blm.gov/cedarcity_fo/cedarpages/blm_ccfo_tread_lightly.htm <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archivedate = 2006-11-04}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Isle Royale National Park|work=Leave No Trace, Outdoor Skills and Ethics|publisher=|date=November 2004|pages=|url=https://www.nps.gov/isro/planyourvisit/upload/LNT%20Booklet.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080210155159/http://www.nps.gov/isro/planyourvisit/upload/LNT%20Booklet.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 10, 2008 }}</ref>

Trail ethics applies to the use of trails, by pedestrians, dog walkers, hikers, backpackers, mountain bikers, equestrians, hunters, and off-road vehicles.

== Etiquette == thumb|upright|Sometimes trail use is regulated. Sometimes conflicts can develop between different types of users of a trail or pathway. Etiquette has developed to minimize such interference. Examples include: * When two groups meet on a steep trail, a custom has developed in some areas whereby the group moving uphill has the right-of-way.<ref name=etiquette>{{cite web|title=Trail Etiquette|first=Melissa|last=Devaughn|work=Backpacker Magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cd4DAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA40|accessdate=22 January 2011|date=April 1997|publisher=Active Interest Media, Inc.|page=40|issn=0277-867X}}</ref> * Trail users generally avoid making loud sounds, such as shouting or loud conversation, playing music, or the use of mobile phones.<ref name=etiquette/> * Trail users tend to avoid impacting on the land through which they travel. Users can avoid impact by staying on established trails, and durable surfaces, not picking plants, or disturbing wildlife, and carrying garbage out. The Leave No Trace movement offers a set of guidelines for low-impact hiking: "Leave nothing but footprints. Take nothing but photos. Kill nothing but time. Keep nothing but memories". * The feeding of wild animals is dangerous and can cause harm to both the animals and to other people.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://thamesriver.on.ca/watershed-health/native-species/dont-feed-wildlife/|title=Dont Feed Wildlife|first=Eleanor|last=Heagy}}</ref> * Mountain bikers must yield to ''both'' hikers and riders on horses (equestrians), unless the trail is clearly designated and marked for bike-only travel. Hikers yield to equestrians.

== Trails in urban areas == [[File:Stanley Seawall.jpg|left|thumb|Stanley Park seawall path, Vancouver, British Columbia. which is divided so as to separate skaters and walkers]] Some cities have worked to add pathways for pedestrians and cyclists.<ref>[http://urbanmilwaukee.com/2017/05/03/eyes-on-milwaukee-how-to-make-a-pedestrian-friendly-city/ http://urbanmilwaukee.com] How to Make a Pedestrian Friendly City.</ref> This can reduce the amount of vehicle traffic in busy urban areas, and make visiting downtown areas more pleasant. There can be difficulties when a path is used by people travelling at different speeds, such as pedestrians, joggers, and cyclists, and the appropriate etiquette is not observed.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://londonist.com/2015/10/cyclists-asked-to-slow-down-on-london-s-towpaths|title=Cyclists Requested To Slow Down On London's Towpaths|date=October 2, 2015|website=Londonist}}</ref>

==Off road vehicles== In the US off-road vehicle use on public land has been criticized by some members of the government<ref name=fed>[http://www.fs.fed.us/recreation/programs/ohv/ http://www.fs.fed.us/recreation/programs/ohv/]</ref> and environmental organizations including the Sierra Club and The Wilderness Society.<ref name=sierra1>{{Cite web|url=http://www.sierraclub.org/policy/conservation/offroad.asp|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20061201153933/http://www.sierraclub.org/policy/conservation/offroad.asp|url-status=dead|title=http://www.sierraclub.org/policy/conservation/offroad.asp|archivedate=December 1, 2006}}</ref><ref name=wilderness010>{{Cite web|url=http://www.wilderness.org/OurIssues/ORV/index.cfm?TopLevel=Home|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20061214145958/http://www.wilderness.org/OurIssues/ORV/index.cfm?TopLevel=Home|url-status=dead|title=http://www.wilderness.org/OurIssues/ORV/index.cfm?TopLevel=Home|archivedate=December 14, 2006}}</ref> They have noted several consequences of illegal ORV use such as pollution, trail damage, erosion, land degradation, possible species extinction,<ref name=CPC>{{cite web|last=Rice|first=Kathleen C.|title=National Collection of Imperiled Plants - Pholisma sonorae|url=http://centerforplantconservation.org/Collection/CPC_ViewProfile.asp?CPCNum=3407|publisher=Center for Plant Conservation|accessdate=8 June 2012}}</ref> and habitat destruction<ref name=lat>{{cite news|url=http://www.latimes.com/news/science/environment/la-na-lizard12jan12,1,6234267.story?coll=la-news-environment&ctrack=1&cset=true |url-status=dead |work=Los Angeles Times |title=Mojave lizard may get protection; off-road vehicles are cited as threat |date=12 January 2008 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081204085512/http://www.latimes.com/news/science/environment/la-na-lizard12jan12,1,6234267.story?coll=la-news-environment&ctrack=1&cset=true |archivedate=December 4, 2008 }}</ref><ref name=lvrj>{{Cite web|url=https://www.reviewjournal.com|title=Las Vegas News &#124; Breaking News & Headlines|date=January 2, 2025|website=Las Vegas Review-Journal}}</ref> which can leave hiking trails impassable.<ref name=mnrespons>{{Cite web|url=http://www.mnresponsiblerec.org/Library/reports/Off-roadvehicledamageinDuluth.htm|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150711134359/http://www.mnresponsiblerec.org/Library/reports/Off-roadvehicledamageinDuluth.htm/|url-status=usurped|title=http://www.mnresponsiblerec.org/Library/reports/Off-roadvehicledamageinDuluth.htm|archivedate=July 11, 2015}}</ref> ORV proponents argue that legal use taking place under planned access along with the multiple environment and trail conservation efforts by ORV groups will mitigate these issues. Groups such as the Blue-ribbon Coalition advocate Treadlightly, which is the responsible use of public lands used for off-road activities.

==See also== {{Portal|Environment|Ecology|Earth sciences|Biology}} * Tread Lightly! * Leave No Trace * "Rules of the Trail" (as applied in Mountain biking) * Clean Trails * Conservation ethic * Environmental ethics

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== * [http://www.cleantrails.org Clean Trails] * [http://www.trentu.ca/academic/trailstudies/moreethics.html Trail Ethics - Ontario-based Codes] * [https://lnt.org/learn/7-principles Trail ethics are provided by: Leave No Trace, Inc.] * [https://cactustoclouds.com/2019/01/06/trail-etiquette-in-the-age-of-me/ Trail Etiquette in the Age of Me]

Category:Environmental ethics Category:Etiquette Ethics