Instant sports
Written by: Alliance of Mountain Climbers
2021-01-10 08:38
Last update date: 2021-01-10 08:38
Under the epidemic situation, hiking has become a holiday leisure activity for many people.
In addition to the crowds, there are also some problems that we must face up to the mountain: trash is everywhere, crowded attractions like downtowns, frequent hiking accidents, and so on.
On social media, there are many reports and posts on these issues. There is no shortage of opinions in the comment area that blamed "novices who hiked suddenly", thinking that they lacked relevant knowledge and preparation and rushed up the mountain.
However, adding all crimes to those who don't know can really solve the existing problems?
Or, can we take the opportunity to establish a responsible mountaineering atmosphere and restore Hong Kong's rural environment to its former beauty again?
There has long been a saying in the local mountain hiking community to identify the skills and experience of some mountain friends, but the "test" is limited to challenging difficult routes.
If hiking really needs a license test, and only relying on technology and experience as the criteria, is it a bit incomplete?
The author hopes to use this as the theme, brainstorming, and come up with a series of requirements to be a responsible climber (A Responsible Hiker).
For example, route selection, hiking safety, knowledge of relevant laws, and consideration of others.
The following article first introduces how to properly manage your companions.
The first article: Properly manage your entourage
Before getting into the main topic, first ask everyone a question: Why do you think garbage appears on the mountain?
What is the motive behind the people who throw away trash?
The trash cans are full of rubbish.
(Provided by the author)
A group of American environmental psychology experts conducted the largest research on Littering behaviour in recent years.
It turns out that among people who litter, there are two biggest reasons:
1. Environmental factors
Why is there a scene of trash in a beautiful natural environment?
It turns out that everything originated from the first piece of garbage left behind!
One of the findings of the research: When people see trash in their environment, they think that the behavior of leaving trash there is accepted by others.
And because the rubbish there will need to be cleaned up sooner or later, the impact of one more rubbish feels trivial.
This kind of mentality of "one dirty, two dirty" has created such a terrible sight of the garbage mountain.
Conversely, in an environment without any garbage, people will become self-disciplined because they want to keep it clean and beautiful, and the chances of leaving garbage will also decrease.
The ideal is "Trash yourself, take it away."
(Provided by the author)
2. Personal values
Personal values almost directly determine whether a person will abandon trash behavior, and values are affected by environmental awareness, motivation, social norms and other elements.
Here are some examples:
When tools for collecting garbage (such as trash cans, garbage bags) are convenient for people, they are more willing to put garbage in these tools, so there is less motivation for littering.
In addition, when society generally has a high awareness of environmental protection, for example, most people know and agree with the practice of "carrying away trash by yourself", and if the trash left in the countryside will be despised by the public, people will tend not to be chaotic. Throw the garbage.
During the epidemic, abandoned masks were common in the countryside.
(Provided by the author)
Suggest
Now that we understand the main reasons behind littering, as responsible climbers, what can we do to reduce littering?
1. Bring your own garbage bag
Since 2017, the Fisheries and Conservation Department will no longer set up trash cans on mountain trails, because it hopes to establish a culture of mountain hikers responsible for taking away trash.
At present, only barbecue sites and camping sites are equipped with trash cans from the Fisheries and Conservation Department. Other hiking trails still have trash cans placed by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department or the District Council.
Veteran hikers will know that it is not a wise choice to put the garbage they bring into the trash can in the countryside.
Because wild animals will tip over trash cans when foraging and bring food packaging to the woods, the environment near the trash cans will become garbage posts over time.
To practice "carry your own trash," we just need to bring a trash bag in our backpack every time we go up the mountain.
Pack the garbage generated during the hike on the day of the mountain in a trash bag, put it in a backpack, and bring it back to the city before discarding it (Pack it out).
It is recommended to use a compact plastic bag for garbage bags to keep the backpack tidy.
Many daily food packaging has a compacting function, and can be stored as a garbage bag for hiking after washing.
(Provided by the author)
Put the garbage made on the mountain into a compact bag and bring it down for disposal.
(Provided by the author)
2. Avoid accidentally leaving garbage
A lot of garbage is left unintentionally by tourists. The more common ones include water bottles, energy food, hiking sticks, and umbrellas. Of course, masks and disinfectant alcohol have a higher rate of occurrence recently.
These items often have one thing in common: they are placed on the outside of the backpack.
Because of convenience, many mountain friends like to put some personal items on the side pockets of the backpack or hang them on the functional belt outside the backpack.
These items are often caught by branches or blown away by the wind.
Unless you can ensure that the items placed outside are completely secured (for example, with small buttons), the safest way is to put all the accompanying items in the backpack to avoid such unintentional mistakes.
The items are hung outside the backpack, and the water bottle is placed in the side pocket, which is easy to throw away.
(Provided by the author)
Buckle the water bottle in the side pocket to prevent it from falling on the road.
(Provided by the author)
3. Waste reduction at source
If there is ample time before departure, we can reduce the rubbish we need to take away from the mountain during the preparation process.
For example, remove excess food packaging and put food in food boxes; bring your own reusable water bottles; reduce the number of plastic bags; replace paper towels with towels, etc.
You can remove the food packaging at home to reduce the production of garbage on the mountain.
(Provided by the author)
Use food boxes and reusable water bottles.
(Provided by the author)
4. Spontaneously organize a clean trail team
Since raising society’s environmental awareness and a clean environment can help reduce people’s littering behavior, we might as well organize voluntary activities to clean mountain trails.
On the one hand, it can help maintain the original clean appearance of the countryside, and on the other hand, it can also be used to infect other mountain hikers to work hard to protect this shared environment.
The outings voluntarily organize trail cleaning teams.
(Data Picture/Photo by Yan Minghui)
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Whether it is intentional or unintentional, it is undeniable that all trash that appears on the mountain is man-made.
Once rubbish is left on the mountain, there is a good chance that it will stay there in the future.
To be a responsible climber, we can try to ask ourselves a question while thinking about one of our favorite mountains: next time I go up the mountain, the scenery I hope to see is the green mountains and rivers of nature, or everywhere A country full of garbage?
Reference materials:
Littering in Context: Personal and Environmental Predictors of Littering Behavior
The Fisheries and Conservation Department implements the "Take Your Own Garbage" Program
Other articles of the Mountain Climber Alliance:
The 4 important factors that determine the way back is also a kind of courage to look back
How difficult is the 5-star difficulty route?
Everyone has a ruler in his heart
Understand the symptoms and treatment of heat stroke to prevent heat stroke from route planning
The author of this article is the Mountain Climbers Association, a local mountain guide organization. Its members include the mountain art instructors of the Hong Kong Mountain Climbing and Climbing Association, and the top rope climbing coach of the Canadian Mountain Guide Association.
Zero trash in the mountains and wilds, starting from you and me.
(01 Art Drawing)
Walk the mountain with people, don’t just ask "how many stars is difficult" before setting off, but ask these 8 questions:
+2
+2
+2
Before hiking, learn about hiking etiquette:
+10
+10
+10
Teach you to use the "GPS Hiking Tracking" service:
+8
+8
+8
Hiking equipment recommended to put in the backpack:
+12
+12
+12
Mountain hiking
