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Advnture
Advnture
Julia Clarke

Rock cairns: the purpose and history of the ubiquitous trail feature

Alex Foxfield Scotland
Rock cairns: cairn in the Lake District.

Love them or loathe them, rock cairns are a mainstay on our hiking trails. These stacks of stones, some broad and scattered, others artfully arranged, are ubiquitous features, cropping up everywhere from summits and cols to beaches and, of course, Instagram.

In this feature, we're here with our hiking experts take an objective look at humble rock cairns, investigating their purpose, revealing their history, giving advice on how to use them and considering whether or not they're bad for the environment.

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