Death Valley National Park might seem like an ideal location to try out your drone, with the vast, rugged, and colorful landscape sure to deliver glorious overhead shots.
However, drone use at the park is forbidden, and these two visitors didn't read the rules before arriving.
Instagram user Dennis (@dstogs_photography) allowed the Tourons of National Parks (@touronsofnationalparks) account to post two images he captured of a couple setting up their remote-controlled aircraft at the summit of a sand dune.
In addition to the photos, Tourons of National Parks posted the park's clear rules in the caption.
A policy memorandum by the National Park Service in 2014 stipulated that the "launching, landing, and operation of unmanned aircraft on lands and waters" within the organization's jurisdiction was strictly prohibited with "very few exceptions."
"In some cases, their use has resulted in noise and nuisance complaints from park visitors, park visitor safety concerns, and one documented incident in which park wildlife were harassed," the NPS detailed. "Small drones have crashed in geysers in Yellowstone National Park, attempted to land on the features of Mount Rushmore National Memorial, been lost over the edge of the Grand Canyon, and been stopped from flying in Prohibited Airspace over the Mall in Washington, D.C."
It's clear, then, that drone use is becoming an increasing problem in national parks all over the United States, and Instagrammers demonstrated zero sympathy for the couple.
"The entitled have to flaunt the rules and have their drones," one user said. "They are so important."
"It boils my blood when I catch people using drones in national parks," another added.
According to the NPS, any violation of the ban is considered a misdemeanor and may land drone operators a $5,000 fine and six months in jail.
E-waste pollution from drone crashes, the provocation and irritation of animals, and a disturbance of the peace at national parks are among the main concerns with the flying technology, and continuing the use of the small aircrafts despite these warnings is seriously disrespectful.
But drones aren't always bad. Seattle-based company Mast Reforestation (formerly DroneSeed), for example, has used the technology to plant trees, with the aim to battle deforestation and forest fires.
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