A relaxing day at the beach turned into a (mildly) frustrating encounter for a local who observed tourists flouting the rules at the park.
"When I looked behind me, I see this," the beachgoer posted on Reddit in the r/mildlyinfuriating community, sharing a photo of people hanging out on top of the sand dunes. In the image, a sign next to the tourists clearly reads: "Please keep off the sea oats & dunes."
"Complete disrespect for the place they save all year to visit," the original poster wrote, explaining that the apparent tourists spent more than an hour next to the sign.
Respecting the rules at parks benefits us all, ensuring the scenery is just as beautiful for future generations. In addition to protecting coastal communities from storm surges, sand dunes are often home to rare wildlife and plants. Disrupting the homes of these species negatively impacts the protective balance of our ecosystems.
"I don't get why people do this," one commenter wrote. "Many times there are good reasons such as safety or nesting birds."
Indeed, to the commenter's former point, tourists who ignore regulations can endanger themselves, the park rangers tasked with keeping guests safe, and other vacationers. In May, a tourist at Long Canyon had to be rescued after leaping onto a ledge off the marked trail.
Meanwhile, in West Virginia, a pair of hikers ignored signs warning them away from climbing Jefferson Rock, a historic site that has suffered additional foundation damage because of tourists and is precarious to scale.
Thankfully, no serious harm appears to have occurred to the tourists in those situations. However, not everyone is so lucky. And sometimes, animals (or fragile protected plants, in this beachgoer's case) suffer the consequences when humans get too close.
Last year, a seemingly well-meaning tourist was fined after trying to help a baby bison cross a river — something that was against park rules. Sadly, according to the National Park Service, the park staff had to euthanize the calf after its herd rejected it.
"In Galveston, the dunes are packed with rattlesnakes," another commenter wrote on the original post. "The signs are for their protection."
"Most beaches have huge fines for this," another person pointed out. "And actively patrol to catch the offenders."
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