06/16/2026
It is summer and tourist season up here in Maine. Here are some tips for enjoying your outdoor adventures and handling the crowds.
Americans made a record 332 million visits to national parks last year (via NPS), and nearly 200 million more will head into national forests. Natural areas can feel mighty crowded in the summer, but with a little research and some creativity, it's possible to find a measure of blissful solitude. Check out Tips for Handling Crowds in Outdoor Spaces and Too Much of a Good Thing for practical advice.
Tips For Handling Crowds in Outdoor Spaces
Categories: 7 Principles, Skills & Techniques
Leave No Trace Tips For Handling Crowds in Outdoor Spaces
Crowds have seemingly become synonymous with many of our outdoor spaces, and with around 1.8 billion visits to our shared outdoor spaces annually, it’s no wonder why. Large amounts of visitors can also mean large amounts of impact and strain on these high profile places. We can help Leave No Trace and care for these areas by doing our part to spread out the crowd and knowing what to do when we encounter one.
Too Much of a Good Thing? Outdoor “Meccas” and Leave No Trace
Categories: News & Updates
Cascadia, OR: We recently spent nine days in and around the lauded outdoor town of Bend, Oregon, named Outside Magazine’s “Best Multi-Sport Town” for 2017. It’s clear how Bend earned this title. In any given day in Bend, you will see people riding their bikes, paddling kayaks or sailing boats in the Cascade Lakes, paddle boarding or tubing on the Deschutes River, or testing their whitewater skills in the newly opened downtown whitewater park. Even in the 90+ degree high desert summer heat, you’ll see evidence of winter sports’ hold on Bend residents, with “skiers” in shorts and tank tops pushing themselves along roads just outside of town on roller-skis. That’s right – even in summer, skiers don’t quit.
But this raises the question of many a Bendite – how many people is too many? A recent article in the local ‘zine asked just this question, to mixed response. Some residents thought that Bend had already passed its limit, while others celebrated the social, political and economic fortune that being a popular outdoor destination has brought to this central Oregon town. We dipped our dusty toes in much of what Bend had to offer – over the Fourth of July holiday, no less – and found Bend busy and full of outdoor loving people, but we never felt it crowded or over-blown.
There are certainly cumulative impact issues here – we noticed quite a bit of trail-braiding along some portions of the Deschutes River Trail, and there was a typical amount of micro-trash in the campsites we visited, but the issue most on the minds of residents is the social impact of having so many people playing in the same space. Float down the Deschutes on a hot summer day, and you’ll bump into other tubers, but the lighthearted attitudes of people beating the heat on the cool water won’t get you down. The local mountain bike trail network, “Phil’s Trails,” was busy mid-day, but even when the parking lot was nearly full, the trails didn’t feel crowded, in part because of very clever management – lots of trail loops start from the same area, quickly dispersing riders, and many trails are one-directional, so you can ride up hill without fear of running into a rider blazing downhill.
More to the point, however, is that we were always able to find solitude in Bend by getting out at the right times. Early mornings and long summer evenings are not only significantly cooler times of the day to get out and play, they’re also surprisingly unpopular times for other people to be on the trail. For paddlers who bemoan the barge of bathing-suited tubers on the short section of river that runs through town, there are miles and miles of wild and scenic Deschutes within minutes of town that we saw almost no one floating. And despite its popularity, the Three Sisters Wilderness has more than enough trail-miles to keep your visit feel remote and wild – just check with the rangers on where most people are hiking and choose a different trail. You can’t go wrong when there are snow-capped peaks, fields of wildflowers, rushing streams and ancient lava domes all around you.
Here are some tips for loving your own outdoor mecca:
Know before you go – is this a holiday weekend? Is there a festival or race in or around the place you want to go? What are the most (and least) visited spots in the area?
Know before you go – is this a holiday weekend? Is there a festival or race in or around the place you want to go? What are the most (and least) visited spots in the area?
Overnight right and stick to trails – there are many good campsites without RVs and generators – we spoke with the local land manager (Deschutes National Forest office) to find the best and least-known camping spots. Find a less crowded trail to avoid excessive impacts in popular areas.
Pick up your trash – sometimes being an outdoor mecca can have positive side-effects – we saw very little trash, and visitors we met had a positive outdoor ethic.
Leave what you find – these places are popular for a reason, so don’t steal the wow of the next visitor.
Be careful with fire – even though there wasn’t a fire ban where we camped, we decided against fires because it was SO DRY. In nearby wilderness areas there is a full-time campfire ban for both wildfire prevention and ecological sensitivity in the high-alpine environment.
Respect wildlife – even the wildlife that gallivants down main street on bicycles, longboards and scooters, wearing wild costumes while celebrating our nation’s birthday.
Be kind to other visitors – everyone has come to [your own private outdoor paradise] because it’s so awesome. You weren’t the first, so show others the same good will that the old-timers gave to you when you first showed up.
Enjoy your world & Leave No Trace,
Have Patience
Remember that anytime you are in a crowd, you are the crowd. This is something we often forget when faced with packed trails in outdoor spaces. We can easily fall into the trap of thinking that everyone else is the problem. Keep in mind that all visitors have just as much right to be there as you do. These spaces belong to all of us. Having patience and being considerate of all those you are sharing the outdoor space with goes a long way. Most of us are receiving the same benefits from nature no matter what activity we partake in. Remember that confrontation or shaming others is never the answer.
Get Up Earlier
Headed for a hike, paddle, or ride? Trails and parking lots can often begin to fill around 9-10 AM. Getting an early start can allow you to enjoy the trail with some solitude and be ready to head home before the crowds start to form. This also opens up your parking spot for other visitors arriving later in the day, helping to curb the impacts that can arise from parking on vegetation.
Go Farther
Even heavy crowds will start to thin the farther you get off the beaten path. This can mean hiking in a little farther on popular trails or driving in to the deeper corners of parks and protected areas. Generally, heading to the areas just on the outskirts of the most popular trails, viewpoints, and areas will mean a little more solitude. This also helps to disperse visitors, and so impacts, across a larger area, meaning less cumulative impacts over time.
Explore Outside of Iconic Areas
Many of our most popular, and so crowded, parks and protected areas have similar spots to visit surrounding them. Rather than visiting a crowded Yosemite Valley in the busy summer, why not try exploring some National Forest land nearby? These areas are often comparable ecosystems and experiences, with less crowds.
Avoid Times of High Use
Following the first principle of Leave No Trace, be sure to Plan Ahead and Prepare, including researching the amount of use the area you’re heading to generally receives when you plan to go, and when you are able, avoiding times of high use. This can mean going in the off season or even heading out mid week rather than on the weekends, etc. Avoiding high use times when we are able to not only gives us the opportunity to experience the place with less crowds, it also helps to spread out use and impacts, protecting the area.
With so many visits to your shared outdoors spaces annually, it’s no wonder why these places can feel crowded. As we work to share these finite resources, it’s important to do what we can when we can, and remember that good stewardship goes a long way. Leave No Trace and Enjoy Your World!
