Art or Vandalism

We recently found damage on the trail at Tuna Canyon. It occurred February 3, when my children were hiking and saw adults with young children, perhaps having some sort of Valentine’s day celebration. It may have been intended as a benign activity, but in addition to hanging decorations, they proceeded to paint living and dead branches and leave paint and trash in the vicinity. Not only does this damage our environment, but adults are demonstrating that this behavior in a natural space is acceptable to their children. For the parents who led this children’s group activity on Feb 3, while I’m sure the intentions were good and lighthearted, next time please consider using materials that you can remove when finished, cleaning up trash, and leaving nature as you found it once you depart.The paper hearts are lovely, but when left, along with paper plates used as pallets, they become debris along the trail. Wood that was painted includes at least two live trees. Please respect our fragile natural environment that we all hold dear.