Tellico
River Cleanup 2004 - Fifth YearTellico
River Cleanup 2004 - Fifth Yearby Stefan Roth, Vice President
For the fifth year in a row, volunteers from Southern Four Wheel Drive Association and Trout Unlimited, working in cooporation with the U.S. Forest Service, dedicated one of their Saturdays to clean up public lands in the Cherokee and Nantahala National Forests.
It's actually a joyful event when you can spend a day with your spouse and kids and a couple of hundred other friendly volunteers on a beautiful late winter day on the Tellico River. Everyone is walking and picking up trash and meeting new people.
Morning sign-up at State Line Campground
A report from member Joe Smith:It was a really great turn out for the Tellico River clean up. Dave Owens and I started at the deep river crossing on Trail 5 and worked down to Trail 1, covered the Beaver Dam Road from the top of Trail Lower 2 back to the bridge, and then Trail 1 starting at Trail 5 to Harshaw Gap. Altogether we collected about 200 pounds of trash, including beer cans, soft drink cans, bottles, plastic jugs, a battery, a side window, DIAPERS, a pillow and various other junk. What was really neat was that the Forest Service trash truck stopped to help us at Hawshaw Gap. The two Forest Service Fire Fighters in the truck went with us down the power line, through the briars, to pick out the years of cans and other trash that was there. There were actually all steel cans with tab tops, for those old enough to remember. Howerver, the most impressive thing to me was that there seemed to be less trash this year than in previous years. Maybe our efforts are making some changes. |
Most
people commented that there did indeed seem to be less trash this year than
last year. We certainly hope so. There really shouldn't be any, but some people
seem to leave trash behind when they could carry it out just as well.
Southern Jeeps had
45 Jeeps and 60+ people in attendance. Southern Jeeps members set off in 3 different
groups to begin the clean-up. Group 1 cleaned along a portion of Trail 1 from
the pay station back towards Tellico Cabins. Group 1 consisted of 14 vehicles
and removed 60 bags of trash! Group 2 cleaned Trail 5 to the campground, the
campground itself and then crossed the creek to continue on up Trail 5. Group
2 consisted of 15 vehicles and removed 56 bags of trash and enough carpet to
start our own carpet store! Group 3 took the road to the top of Lower 2, then
proceeded on up the road to the bottom of Upper 2. Group 3 had 21 vehicles and
removed 28 bags of trash! We even got the jeep dogs in on the clean-up as a
fellow jeeper from Columbus taught his dog to go down the hill and retrieve
cans! We not only removed the usual day-to-day trash but had some real “different”
trash to clean up such as cell phone, futon mattress, TV, full size bedsprings,
hot water heater, street signs, Toyota rear quarter panel and lots of mufflers,
tail pipes and other assorted underbody parts that were left behind by vehicles
not so fortunate on the trails.
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We want to thank the following Forest Service people who gave their Saturday to help out:
Report from Larry Fox, Forest Technician,
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Report from Mary Jane Burnette, |
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Other groups that participated included the Sequoyah Hiking Club, Clinch River Trout Unlimited (1 person), Cumberland Off Road (1), TVA (1), TWRA (2). There were a number of regular individuals who participated as well, but the majority were with groups. There also seemed to be several people picking up trash who never signed up. Items found included a mattress, car parts, batteries, a grill, scrap metal, miscellaneous camping equipment, and the catch of the day was a 2004 Ford pick up truck that had flipped over into the river and dumped CD’s, a cell phone, camping equipment and other items into the river. |
Southern officers at lunch afterwards
in Tellico Plains.
Yes, we like to eat!
Members of Rattle Rock 4WD Club showing
off the results of their work!
