>>3829482/2
LNT isn't about tip-toeing through nature, though. It's about having a self-awareness for the consequences of your actions. Just as a child must learn that leaving food wrappers on the floor of his bedroom results in mice and insect infestations where he sleeps, people need to learn that camping directly adjacent to the trail or right in the middle of a scenic spot results in an eyesore and a nuisance for other people like them who went to that outdoor destination to enjoy its natural beauty.
We don't live in the world of 75+ years ago. There are simply too many people to not change our habits. If everybody tore up their campsite every time they went out, then there would be little difference between a wilderness and the ghettos of Chicago.
As for making or not making fires, this really depends on where you are. Some ecosystems can support people making fires a lot better than others. In general, the longer and more vibrant the growing season, the less you should care about detrimental effects from your fire. I always make a fire when I go camping in the Midwest because I think it helps ward off the mosquoties; however, I rarely make a fire when I go camping high in the Rocky Mountains because there's not much wood up there to spare for fires, and they always leave a permanent scar on the Earth, killing all the bacteria, fungi, algae, and seeds in the soil underneath your fire and ensuring that there will be a dead spot there for half a century.
Pic related is about as good as you can get while building a fire in the mountains and leaving minimal trace. Notice how there is NOT a fire ring, which would attract other people to the same spot and invite them to burn more wood there. This campsite was about 1/4 mile from the trail, granted within eyeshot of a lake and protected from the wind, so it was an obvious place to camp to the trained eye. When I camped here, I did not make a fire, and as a result, there was no additional trace from my presence.
