Monday, January 10, 2011

Alongside the Assabet River in Stow

The view downriver from the bridge at Whitman's Crossing looked inviting this afternoon.  However, my boat remained at home today out of deference to Old Man Winter's tightening icy grip.  The view below shows some of his recent accomplishments near where my boat might, otherwise, have been launched...
The reason I visited this spot was to collect the site's coordinates for entry into my recently started gps databank of launchsites.  Before I knew it, I was putting on my hiking boots, grabbing some gloves and a dry bag and then following the old railway grade that runs closely along the riverbank.   After travelling about a quarter-mile, I came to the end of the line, terrestrially speaking anyways, and my bag spilled forth these 20 pieces of trash...
This modest haul was composed of 15 recyclable containers (12 redeemable) and 5 pieces of miscellaneous rubbish such as plastic bags and a bait tub.  My YTD total stands at 84.
I believe the majority of today's trash wouldn't have been visible to the average eye.  However, I'm beginning to realize that my eyes have become well trained in seeing trash, that previously, I'd have walked past unaware.  Whether or not this is a good skill to have, I'm not sure.
Because all of today's trash was within a few feet of the river, there's a good chance that with the coming spring's higher water levels this gang would have gone "floatabout".  So, in a sense, this was a small scale preemptive raid substituting for my usual on-water patrols.   For the time being, raids such as this will have to suffice.

3 comments:

Bernie Paquette said...

Stop, Look and Listen. Glad you have "eyes" for trash and activism to do something about it when you see it. And Thank You for helping to make others aware.

Bernie Paquette
www.litterwithastorytotell.blogspot.com

Bernie Paquette said...

Thank You for your watchful eyes spotting and disposing of trash in our waterways. Sharing stories that help promote the eradication of litter is a passion of mine.

Here is my blog of such short stories:
http://www.litterwithastorytotell.blogspot.com/

Al said...

Hello Bernie, I enjoyed visiting your blog: litterwithastorytotell.blogspot.com

You obviously have developed a well trained eye for the stuff that doesn't belong.
It's like Mike Anderson of cleanuptheriver.com says, "Anyone, on any given day, has the power to improve a place."
Congrats your good work!