My family LOVES rock stacking! It’s so fun and relaxing to create these beautiful sculptures while we are traveling and exploring. To us, it’s a way to take a moment to relax, express ourselves, and take some cool pics.

“Rock balancing or stone balancing (stone or rock stacking) is an art, discipline, or hobby in which rocks are naturally balanced on top of one another in various positions without the use of adhesives, wires, supports, rings or any other contraptions which would help maintain the construction’s balance.” (source: Wikipedia)

My goal for this post is to inspire others to create rock stacks when you can, but also, make sure you are knowledgeable about stacking and find out the rules of your location first, especially in National Parks and Forests.

While it’s considered an art to some,
it’s a definite NO NO to others!
Did you know it could be hazardous to wildlife and the environment?

Also called a “Cairn”, stacks of rocks have many purposes, including shrines, burial markers and trail markers. So erecting one in a National Park,
for example, could potentially confuse future hikers, as they may
think it’s a trail marker and go off course.

When stacking rocks on a beach, it could be a danger to wildlife.
A crab, for example, seeks refuge in rocks. He might confuse your masterpiece with a safe place to hide. It’s not a sound structure, so it could crush him!

Some National Parks have even banned the activity and actively go around dismantling rock stacks because their rules state you should leave everything in nature as you found it.

Our rock stacks have always been created with rocks that were within
an arms reach from the spot we were stacking in. Although we have
left them before, in hopes of inspiring others to create their own, we now stack, take pics and then enjoy knocking them down before we move on!

Please feel free to leave comments! Do you stack? If so, we’d love to see your pics! Did you know the dangers of stacking?