Painted Cairns Contribute to the Aesthetics of Nature Trails
Rock piles, stacked stones, or cairns seem to be everywhere on mountain trails. But the debate over whether they contribute to the aesthetics of nature trails is more complicated than it seems. Cairns are stacks of rocks built for a wide range of purposes. From a simple three-stone duck with its beak pointed to the trail in Maine, to the two-legged towers of Acadia National Park built by early 20th century pathfinder Waldron Bates, these stacks are designed based on a mix of factors including local geography, available material, and cultural and artistic traditions.
Officially established cairns are used to mark trails, particularly above tree line and in alpine-type environments where painted trail blazes are not as visible. They are also important to hikers because they can be a guide when the trail becomes unclear.
But some hikers and environmentalists are concerned that painting cairns can have unintended consequences on the environment and hiking safety. For example, if they become unstable or collapse, the rocks can fall and damage or even kill other people below. Cairns can also block the flow of water, which can cause erosion and flood the trail. And while they may be helpful for some hikers, others see them as an eyesore on pristine, untouched lands.
How Do Painted Cairns Contribute to the Aesthetics of Nature Trails?
In addition, when cairns are not carefully maintained, they can become an obstacle for hikers and even pose dangers for them. They can create tripping hazards, obstruct views of the landscape below and, in some cases, even block access to cliffs and other dangerous areas. Additionally, they can disrupt or trample vegetation and wildlife.
While there is no doubt that cairns can be an eyesore, what many hikers don’t realize is that when they paint them, they are also violating the principles of Leave No Trace. Just like carving initials into trees, leaving a note in a log cabin, spray painting your name on a boulder or carveing your initials into a rock face, adding to or removing any cairn is illegal on most public land.
Fortunately, a growing number of hikers are turning to art to help make their cairns more aesthetically pleasing while still protecting the ecosystems that surround them. Painters use a variety of methods to create the cairns in their artwork, from a more natural and authentic approach to more abstract depictions of the stacked stone forms.
The result is a range of styles that bring cairns into a wider perspective while still providing hikers with the information they need to navigate trails. Using a technique called reverse painting, the artists depict the stacked rocks in their environment rather than a straight on, frontal view. This brings the cairns into a more three dimensional perspective that is more realistic. This approach makes the cairns look more like actual mountains than just a pile of rocks on a hill. In addition, the use of a palette that uses earth tones adds to the realism. The finished cairns are then placed over wooden internal frames, making them suitable for hanging in living rooms, offices and more.