Respecting nature when enjoying the outdoors seems like a straightforward deal, but unfortunately, that isn't always the case.
Case in point: A hiker shared a photo of some graffiti with the r/coloradohikers subbreddit in a post (warning: racial slur) titled "People suck - taken at Blue Lake in Brainard Lake Rec Area."
"Someone vandalized this rock right next to the lake," they wrote in the caption.
The image showed a rock formation defaced with several words and scribbles in brown spray paint. Some of it is unintelligible, while a few others are evident, including "N.B.A." and — most disturbingly — a racial slur.
Some people in the comments also thought that the responsible party drew a swastika before turning it into a two-by-two square. The fact that they appeared to write "KKK" within the square adds credence to this claim, though this speculation could be off-base.
Regardless of the vandals' intent, cases such as this make for horrifying scenes that not only are disrespectful to nature and other hikers but an inconvenience to the park custodians who work to preserve natural beauty.
Furthermore, removing spray paint can disturb the environment by eroding rock formations and potentially causing the toxins from the spray paint to contaminate nearby water systems or vegetation.
Occurrences like this are all too common, as other vandals have defaced trees by carving initials, disregarded signs explicitly stating not to mark bacterial mats, and spray-painted a lava tube that formed 27,000 years ago.
If you happen to stumble upon graffiti or catch a vandal in the act, it's always best to report the incident to a park ranger or law enforcement in order to deter future cases.
"So sad. The Forest Service is in the process of getting the proper materials to remove the graffiti with the least amount of impact to the environment," one person noted.
"This literally makes my heart sink," someone else wrote.
"Wow this is so cool. What a great thing to do. So glad we live in such a thoughtful and caring community," another user responded sarcastically.
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