Litter, there may be hope after all. 2024

Fishing Rhino reply :

Litter. I thought it was futile to expect some to dispose of their trash properly. Either take it home, or deposit it in a trash barrel, if available. Do not just toss it on the ground.

One of my favorite fishing holes is also one of the most littered. Trash everywhere. Even old furniture and boat parts tossed into the woods.

Futile, or not, I was going to make an attempt to clean up the ramp. I brought a plastic 55 gallon drum to the ramp, with a plastic liner. I also brought a box. I picked up all the trash at the ramp except for what had blown into the water, and left the drum against a bush to protect it from the wind.

This was three weeks ago, and since then, the only trash I have seen was in the barrel. When the barrel got to about half full, I took out the liner and "installed" a new liner. Went fishing this morning and the drum was about half full. Coffee cups, McDonald containers, Dunkin Donuts, bags, and all the typical litter found at ramps had been placed in the drum.

It goes to show, you never know. But, so far, so good. I'm going to replace the drum with one that has "Thank You" stenciled on it.

Scott F reply :

My state is so broke, they took the trash cans out of the state park because they can't afford to pay someone to empty them.

Lobo65 reply :

Every positive step makes a difference. Have the same problem at a local lake near the house. Trash, used fishing line, anything you can think of, piled up everywhere. And there are refuse cans on site! Hat is off to you for making a difference.

geo g reply :

Great effort putting out the barrel and maintaining it. That is something that warms my heart and I commend you for it.

I had a pleasant surprise in the everglades at the Holey Lands out in no mans land. I saw a large group of trucks running the levees, stopping, and getting out while I was fishing deep in the everglades. These banks are full of gators and snakes so its rare you see anyone get out, and walk the banks. One truck stopped close to me, so I asked what was going on. They were all members of the airboat club and they volunteered to clean up the banks, out in no mans land. There are 30 miles of canals these guys were cleaning up. It was heart warming to see these tough guys, spending their time, helping mother nature. There are still a lot of good people in this country.

Jartbek reply :

I am cheering for you I always find empty Styrofoam containers from worms all over the ground I actually am thinking about building something with them.

wdp reply :

On 6/15/2017 at 9:20 AM, Fishing Rhino said:

Litter. I thought it was futile to expect some to dispose of their trash properly. Either take it home, or deposit it in a trash barrel, if available. Do not just toss it on the ground.

One of my favorite fishing holes is also one of the most littered. Trash everywhere. Even old furniture and boat parts tossed into the woods.

Futile, or not, I was going to make an attempt to clean up the ramp. I brought a plastic 55 gallon drum to the ramp, with a plastic liner. I also brought a box. I picked up all the trash at the ramp except for what had blown into the water, and left the drum against a bush to protect it from the wind.

This was three weeks ago, and since then, the only trash I have seen was in the barrel. When the barrel got to about half full, I took out the liner and "installed" a new liner. Went fishing this morning and the drum was about half full. Coffee cups, McDonald containers, Dunkin Donuts, bags, and all the typical litter found at ramps had been placed in the drum.

It goes to show, you never know. But, so far, so good. I'm going to replace the drum with one that has "Thank You" stenciled on it.

???? Awesome idea!!!

I should try this at our neighborhood pond. I gave up picking trash up out there 2 yrs ago - it was a losing effort. ?

Oregon Native reply :

It's always a feel good feeling to make our great outdoors look a little better even though so many think it's their own private waste dump. As long as the good Lord lets me be a part of this earth I will probably be picking up after #@!'$.

NYWayfarer reply :

Kudos to you sir. One person can make a difference.

Lures'n'Liberty reply :

It's both sad and resourceful that you can always start a fire with the garbage lying on the banks of the mighty Monongahela river, I know I have spent many a night along the banks burning the trash that washes up on shore.

JG233 reply :

Kudos to you Tom!

I always bring a little shopping bag with me when I bank fish. I'll pick up whatever trash I see around at the spots I fish. I think it's a good policy.

Lures'n'Liberty reply :

Has anyone here taken the bank trash challenge? If you're ever looking for a challenge that will hone your skills, bring terminal tackle and a garbage bag. You can use your own hooks and lead, and the rule is to only use trash as bait. While any tournament rules can apply, each 30 gallon bag of turned in is counted as a 5 lb bass at weigh in.

Jigfishn10 reply :

@Fishing Rhino, Sawdy?

buzzed bait reply :

well done man!!

MassYak85 reply :

Nice! I may be wrong but I feel the majority who litter are simply doing it out of convenience, give them a convenient place to put the trash and they'll probably use it.

RoLo reply :

On 6/15/2017 at 9:35 AM, Scott F said:

My state is so broke, they took the trash cans out of the state park because they can't afford to pay someone to empty them.

In a word: 'Misappropriation'.

onetime reply :

Awesome gesture on your part sir, very well done, I hope your holding your head high!

XpressJeff reply :

On 6/15/2017 at 9:35 AM, Scott F said:

My state is so broke, they took the trash cans out of the state park because they can't afford to pay someone to empty them.

What Illinois having fiscal issues?

Never would've thought that!

Good job Rhino- Thank you for stepping up sir! ?????

Fishing Rhino reply :

On 6/15/2017 at 11:35 PM, Jigfishn10 said:

@Fishing Rhino, Sawdy?

Sawdy.

Oregon Native reply :

Yesterday was one of those days where pre-fishing although not bad dink wise was frustrating as if I hooked a good one it was lost. Not breaking off .... just one of those days. Due to the water coming up on the system I thought well let's pick up some trash floating and it didn't take long to fill up a trash bag and deposit it at the ramp. Hoping karma will help me Saturday in the club tourney.

Tight Lines all

TOXIC reply :

Kudos to you for the upfront effort. I used to wade fish the Shenandoah River quite frequently. Access is a constant problem. Once in the river you are fine to travel where ever as long as you don't go up on shore on to private property. I had a friend that owned 300 feet of shoreline property that I used for access and I waded about 3 miles upstream or downstream. I had a friend come to town and wanted to give it a try but we didn't want to drive the extra distance to my other friends property, so we took a road along the river looking for access points. All areas were posted no trespassing. Came to one small pull-off that looked good. Got out and it was littered with everything from beer cans to baby diapers. I always carry a box of trash bags in my jeep so I told my buddy that we needed to clean this up before we fish. We filled 4 trash bags!! Went fishing and after about an hour I see someone standing by my jeep so I wade back over and it is a DNR Officer. He asked if I had permission to access at this spot. I told him no and stated I didn't see any signs. He pointed up in a tree and sure enough there was one. They have a -0- tolerance policy for trespassing. I thought I was getting a ticket for sure. He then looked over at the 4 trash bags laying against the jeep and asked if that was trash. I told him yes and that we cleaned up the area before we started to fish. Not only did I not get a ticket, he took down my information and said he would give it to the landowner and "suggest" I have access going forward. Too many places that used to be access points were shut down, posted and patrolled because of inconsiderate people who trashed the river. It's a shame.

Jigfishn10 reply :

On 6/16/2017 at 1:15 PM, Fishing Rhino said:

Sawdy.

I gotta get down there one of these days. Great job Rhino.

.ghoti. reply :

On 6/16/2017 at 5:11 AM, RoLo said:

In a word: 'Misappropriation'.

You don't know the half of it, my friend. Welcome to Illinois; where our governors make our license plates.

Bluebasser86 reply :

On 6/15/2017 at 9:35 AM, Scott F said:

My state is so broke, they took the trash cans out of the state park because they can't afford to pay someone to empty them.

Same here. Instead they put up signs that it's a "trash free zone" and pretend like people will take their trash with them instead.

Skunked again reply :

Kudos to you!

We used to have a lake cleanup day, haven't for a couple of years now. It had been every spring, said it was being moved to the fall for weather reasons. Hasn't happened since. We would fill a big dumpster.

There are trash cans by every parking area and others scattered around. It's amazing how many people walk by them to go fishing, leave their trash laying down, walk by a trash can to get back to their car.

The worst is fishin line. Ever try mowing around a lake?

TOXIC reply :

Sometimes it's very hard to keep up with the litter. I fish the Potomac River a lot and the amount of trash is overwhelming. The river has been cleaned up and is a premier fishing destination for many. The Elites and FLW routinely come here. Here's the problem....Most of the really good fishing is downstream from.....Washington. DC. The amount of trash that is generated is huge!! Add in that the Potomac is fed by hundreds of small streams and tributaries from up north all the way to the Chesapeake Bay. After hard rains all of these "feeders" act just like a trash chute funneling into the river. I have been out an seen large kitchen appliances (refrigerator) and Semi-truck tires still on the rim floating down the river. Let alone all of the trees and natural flotsam and jetsam. The amount of garbage is staggering.

CybrSlydr reply :

On 6/16/2017 at 6:44 PM, TOXIC said:

Kudos to you for the upfront effort. I used to wade fish the Shenandoah River quite frequently. Access is a constant problem. Once in the river you are fine to travel where ever as long as you don't go up on shore on to private property. I had a friend that owned 300 feet of shoreline property that I used for access and I waded about 3 miles upstream or downstream. I had a friend come to town and wanted to give it a try but we didn't want to drive the extra distance to my other friends property, so we took a road along the river looking for access points. All areas were posted no trespassing. Came to one small pull-off that looked good. Got out and it was littered with everything from beer cans to baby diapers. I always carry a box of trash bags in my jeep so I told my buddy that we needed to clean this up before we fish. We filled 4 trash bags!! Went fishing and after about an hour I see someone standing by my jeep so I wade back over and it is a DNR Officer. He asked if I had permission to access at this spot. I told him no and stated I didn't see any signs. He pointed up in a tree and sure enough there was one. They have a -0- tolerance policy for trespassing. I thought I was getting a ticket for sure. He then looked over at the 4 trash bags laying against the jeep and asked if that was trash. I told him yes and that we cleaned up the area before we started to fish. Not only did I not get a ticket, he took down my information and said he would give it to the landowner and "suggest" I have access going forward. Too many places that used to be access points were shut down, posted and patrolled because of inconsiderate people who trashed the river. It's a shame.

Love these kinds of interactions with LEOs/Wardens/Etc. The kind you ran into see the bigger picture.

BassWhole! reply :

On 6/16/2017 at 4:59 AM, MassYak85 said:

Nice! I may be wrong but I feel the majority who litter are simply doing it out of convenience, give them a convenient place to put the trash and they'll probably use it.

No, I think you are right, sadly though, what does that say about us?

When I fish my local lakes and ponds I bring a couple of plastic shopping bags and bring out all the fishing related trash, as well as all the plastic that will fit. I also put all the fishing line in my back pocket.

MassYak85 reply :

On 6/22/2017 at 1:11 AM, reason said:

No, I think you are right, sadly though, what does that say about us?

When I fish my local lakes and ponds I bring a couple of plastic shopping bags and bring out all the fishing related trash, as well as all the plastic that will fit. I also put all the fishing line in my back pocket.

I always grab any fishing line lying around. That one's a pet peeve of mine.

SuperCorona reply :

On 6/17/2017 at 11:54 PM, Skunked again said:

Kudos to you!

We used to have a lake cleanup day, haven't for a couple of years now. It had been every spring, said it was being moved to the fall for weather reasons. Hasn't happened since. We would fill a big dumpster.

There are trash cans by every parking area and others scattered around. It's amazing how many people walk by them to go fishing, leave their trash laying down, walk by a trash can to get back to their car.

The worst is fishin line. Ever try mowing around a lake?

That's a terrible job. I spent 2 hrs unwinding line from my mower one day. 10x worse than getting it out of the trolling motor.

12327

Litter, there may be hope after all. 2024

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