Cairn making can be a surprisingly relaxing activity that will bring you closer together with your community and the Earth. You can make a traditional rock pile or a creative stack to help you focus on balance, permanence and harmony.
Throughout the history of mankind, cairns have served many different purposes. They were used to mark a route or indicate a food source. In North America Native Americans also made cairns to serve as burial places, a tradition known as inukshuk.
The word “cairn”, which is derived from Gaelic, means “heap or pile of stones”. These are usually built to look like a hill http://cairnspotter.com/generated-post-4. They can range in size from tiny rock sculptures to huge man-made stone hills. Some are comparable to kistvaens or dolmens, but built out of stone instead of ephemeral Earthworks.
Cairns can be used in many different ways by hikers. Cairns can be used by hikers to return to the trailhead at the end of a long day of hiking or to help them find their way in remote wilderness areas.
A well-placed trail cairn is a lifesaver and can guide stranded hikers or those who have difficulty finding their way. Some people claim that cairns do not belong in the environment and violate Leave No Trace principles.