Unfortunately, trampling causes vegetation damage and soil erosion in virtually every environment. Recovery that takes a year in the southern Appalachians might require 25 years or more in Glacier National Park, MT. Other impacts are also possible. Most pristine soils contain animals that live or feed on decaying plants. Trampling destroys habitat for these insects, earthworms, mollusks and snails, as well as the fungi that fertilize the soil and help make re-growth possible. Vegetation protects underlying soils. Once plant growth is destroyed, erosion can continue with or without further use.
Wherever you travel and camp, use surfaces that are resistant to impact such as rock out-crops, sand, gravel, dry grasses, snow or water. Dry grasses and sedges (which resemble grasses) are naturally durable due to their hardy root structures and flexible stems.
A very durable surface for lunch along the John Muir Trail!(The above text was adapted from the North America Skills & Ethic book)
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A boy scout leading a workshop during summer camp, after braging about all the LNT training he had taken, said that a durable surface was "basically anything other than water."
I grimaced and let it go. There was only one other person in the workshop.
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