Tourists outraged after making shocking discovery at natural landmark: 'This is seriously disgusting'

Visitors and guides stumbled upon an instance of vandalism at Coyote Buttes North in northern Arizona, and a Reddit user shared an image of the problem in the r/Hiking subreddit.

"This isn't just public land; it is sacred land." — Photo Credit: Reddit

The photo shows that a visitor appeared to have carved the initials "S+A" onto the wall of The Wave, a massive rock formation in Coyote Buttes North. It, along with Coyote Buttes South, is considered part of the Paria Canyon-Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness.

This 112,500-acre stretch of wilderness is managed by the Bureau of Land Management, making it federally protected land.

"This isn't just public land; it is sacred land. This is seriously disgusting," one user wrote, acknowledging the region's historical significance and the natural beauty that inspired Congress to designate it as land worth protecting.

It is so protected that one typically needs to go through a fairly exhaustive permit process even to visit the area.

Vandalism of any form is rarely acceptable, and it is usually considered illegal.

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Environmental vandalism, in general, is something that should be condemned and called out everywhere it is seen, whether on federal land or elsewhere.

Preserving the natural beauty of the environment is crucial to ensuring future generations can appreciate it. Protecting natural areas also helps ensure they can continue to provide habitats for the animals that call them home.

Those who destroy such beauty, such as by cutting down trees or carving their names into the surrounding flora, should be reported to the proper authorities.

"It's frustrating that this place is one of the hardest to access for visitation and still these people vandalized it. They went through all the work to get there and felt the need to make their mark known above all others as if the place belonged to them," wrote another user on the post.