One local Icelander has shared a warning message about a seemingly harmless activity that tourists engage in: building rock cairns.
Constructing new rock cairns not only detracts from authentic ones, but it also disrupts and damages the surrounding environment, which can take years to recover from.
"Please stop building stone cairns in Iceland," the poster pleaded on the r/VisitingIceland subreddit. This is a trend among tourists that's "quietly causing a lot of harm," they explained.
Rock cairns, or "vörður" in Icelandic, are tall stacks of rocks that served as navigational markers for early settlers and travelers throughout remote areas in Iceland.
These rock markers, which have stood for hundreds of years, helped guide people safely through "mountains, lava fields, and highland deserts," especially in poor weather conditions, the original poster described.
Many tourists have replicated and built new rock towers while visiting these typically protected heritage sites throughout Iceland, perhaps as a way to leave their mark. These newly constructed piles are left behind while travelers venture off to new sites.
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Building new rock cairns and leaving them up is dangerous for hikers and travelers who still rely on the original rock cairns for navigation. Not only can new rock piles confuse travelers, but they can also steer them off their intended path, which can be perilous in remote areas.
Rocks also act as a soil stabilizer, preventing erosion, and they allow vegetation and micro-ecosystems to form. Picking up rocks to build these towers disrupts the ground, damages fragile vegetation, and can speed up soil erosion.
"Don't add stones, don't move them, and don't build new ones," the original poster wrote. "Take nothing but memories, leave nothing but footprints."
Posts like these are important and necessary reminders to preserve cultural heritage sites, ensuring that future generations can enjoy these historical landmarks for years to come.
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Definitely 👍 Alterations to these sites — whether intentional or not — risks damaging them, which can impact their longevity.
In another example of irresponsible tourism elsewhere, people have wedged coins between the stones at Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland. The rust buildup and expansion on these stones create enough pressure to cause cracks and crumbles in the rocks.
In some cases, like at Yosemite National Park, destroying spontaneously built rock cairns can help keep visitors safe and on the right path.
"I kick them over wherever I see them in the world, I hate them," one commenter wrote. "If I wanted to see manmade rock towers, I would go to a city."
"My grandmother still uses cairns and some new ones led her to Grindavík," another user shared. "It's not funny guys."
The town of Grindavík has been largely evacuated and abandoned following a 2023 volcanic eruption.
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