The Arctic Circle Center at Saltfjellet in Nordland has up to 200,000 visitors every summer. In the unique mountain area full of Sami cultural monuments, it has become increasingly common for tourists to build cairns and document it on social media. The most eager bring equipment to drill metal plates with their name into the rock. STEINØRKEN: In Saltfjellet National Park, 680 meters above sea level, the Polar Circle Center is located. Here, tourists build so-called stone cairns or use stones to write their name when they visit. Photo: Marius Guttormsen / news But why is this a problem? – The area around the Arctic Circle Center is a landscape protection area with the purpose of taking care of nature. Now we have huge wounds in the landscape, says general manager Elias Andersson at the Polar Circle Centre. In the most intense areas for cairn construction, only sand and stone remain, and no vegetation. Here, someone has put in a lot of work drilling a metal plate into the rock, with their signature. Photo: Frank Nygård / news Saltfjellet also has a Sami cultural environment which, over several thousand years, has layer upon layer of cultural monuments. The area is considered the oldest and most important area of Sami cultural heritage south of Finnmark. – We have examples of stones from 500-year-old Sami hearths being torn loose to build cairns. Signs have been put up to prevent the construction, but it is to no avail. Despite the fact that the cairns are razed to the ground every autumn, they reappear just as quickly. In recent times, a new phenomenon has arisen, according to Andersson. For some visitors, building cairns is clearly not enough. – Now the name will be built with stones too, he says. TRACE: Here, no one should be in any doubt that Mika, Charlie and Anne have been to Saltfjellet this summer. Photo: Marius Guttormsen / news READ ALSO: news has previously told about extensive vandalism and carvings in mountains in Lofoten. What used to be green vegetation is now stone and sand. Photo: Marius Eriksen Guttormsen / news “I was there” Stories of travelers settling in on holiday seem to be increasing all over the world. In the past year we have seen images of tourists climbing a sacred Mayan pyramid, posing sexually on a statue in Italy or overturning ancient rock formations in Nevada in the US. Another small greeting from a couple from Denmark who have been to Saltfjellet this summer. Photo: Marius Eriksen Guttormsen / news What is it that makes someone unable to behave when we are out and about? And why must we, in life and death, leave traces behind us where we have been? Some people experience a moral disconnection when they are out and about, says Åsa Grahn, who is a tourism expert and associate professor at the University of Stavanger. – People want to live a different life than they do at home. They have paid dearly for the holiday of their dreams and then they must have the best experience by far. If that means building cairns, or bringing stones from the finest beaches, we will do it. She adds: – You don’t think about how your actions have consequences on the environment or the people who live there. – We are fed beautiful pictures from tourist gems on social media, and suddenly you are physically there. For one reason or another, a need arises to leave a more lasting mark on you. Åsa Grahn, associate professor at the University of Stavanger. Photo: University of Stavanger Grahn believes that very few people deliberately destroy or vandalize. – They do it because others do it. You think, “That’s cool, I can do that.” And then they take a picture of it as well to show the outside world that I have been here. Despite attempts to tear down stone cairns built by tourists, they have been rebuilt just as quickly. Photo: Marius Guttormsen / news The hunt for likes Truls Engström at the Norwegian Hotel College at the University of Stavanger has a doctorate in learning psychology. He believes that social media has helped reinforce people’s need to document where they are and what they are doing. – Many people live their lives through social media. They depend on people watching and following you. Then you have to do things that make as many people as possible follow you. Engström believes that much of the reason why some tourists behave badly is due to a lack of social sanctions. Despite attempts to tear down stone cairns built by tourists, they have been rebuilt just as quickly. Photo: Frank Nygård – If you do something at home that is not within the social norms or has the right attitudes, then there will soon be consequences from friends and acquaintances. You notice that. If, on the other hand, you are on holiday and only visit the place once, some people leave both ethics and morals at home, says Engström. Engström believes that if people had known that the cairn building had local consequences for nature and created problems for others, they would not have done it. – Most people are really very concerned about doing the right things. But then it is extremely important to provide good information. The local tourism industry, the hotel industry and the entire destination must educate those who come. Even if the stone cairns are torn down after the tourist season, they come back just as quickly. Photo: Marius Eriksen Guttormsen / news General Manager Elias Andersson at the Arctic Circle Center says that the problem with cairn building increases with each passing year. – This year there are more cairns than ever before, he says. Andersson says that the staff at the center cannot control what the tourists do. – We demolish cairns when we have time and opportunity, even if we are not responsible for the national park. Now he is calling for even better signage. – And those signs should go up in several languages, he believes. Tourism expert Åsa Grahn believes that much can be solved with increased knowledge. – There have never been as many cairns as this year, states general manager Elias Andersson at the Polar Circle Centre. Photo: Frank Nygård – At school we learn a lot about different cultures and how to take care of nature. But we learn nothing about how to take care of people we visit. We need to understand what unwanted behavior does to those who actually live in tourist locations. She adds: – We all have a responsibility to crack down on unwanted behaviour. When you are a guest in someone else’s hometown or country, you should behave respectfully.) Published 29/07/2024, at 15.59 Updated 29/07/2024, at 16.07
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Tourists build cairns in the protected area on Saltfjellet at the Polar Circle Center – news Nordland
