Opinion

Last week we ran a story about a careless photographer who destroyed a national monument while light painting the site with burning steel wool. And now there’s this: a careless crew of Canadians have shared images and videos of themselves trammeling on natural wonders in Yellowstone National Park and Utah’s Bonneville Salt Flats where their images show them waterskiing off the back of an RV.

Their posts quickly went viral, provoking a strong public outcry. The Wyoming U.S Attorney’s Office has since filed charges against the three-man crew (who call themselves “High on Life”) for leaving a designated walkway at Yellowstone’s Grand Prismatic Springs. The Bureau of Land Management also said they were investigating the group’s activities at the Salt Flats to determine if any crimes were committed.

In response to the public outcry, the High on Life crewmembers apologized and announced they will donate $5000 to Yellowstone National Park. Their statement reads, in part:

“Three days ago we were lucky enough to visit Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming and made the unfortunate error of leaving the pathway. We did not respect the protected environment we were exploring, and we want to acknowledge our wrongdoing. Because we have disappointed people with our actions, we have taken down the footage filmed off of the boardwalk at Yellowstone. We have realized that what we did was not okay, and we want others to learn from our mistake.”

The video below is a learning moment for all of us to get high on the beauty of our natural treasures—not the work of irresponsible photographers like the High on Life crew.