Random Camping Mess

[dryangler]

I came across a freshly abandoned campsite while fishing Fallentimber Creek last week. The garbage that was left behind was unreal. 2 - 6man tents, clothes, burnt and broken chairs, +-150 beer cans and liquor bottles, food,suitcase,oil containers ...etc. all within 15 metres of the creek. There was a Safeway receipt (with name) and a credit card receipt (name and number) in each of the tents. I contacted SRD and was advised there was nothing they could do to charge these idiots as there were no eye witnesses. They will try to obtain addresses and send them a letter telling them they were bad. A SRD crew will be sent to the site (on our tab$$$$) to clean up the mess. In 30+ years as an outdoorsman I have never witnessed such a mess. Very disappointing.

[admin]

A SRD crew will be sent to the site (on our tab$$$$) to clean up the mess.

 

Ya gotta love that. Pass around the names here and we can hammer that message home too. Sorry that you had to witness that kind of blatant disregard.

[rusty]

I would take lots of pictures and contact the Sun or Herald. They may have a slightly different take on things.

[ladystrange]

i really dont understand why people cant pick up their own junk. although they could be the kind of people who live in 18inches of junk all over their house too but come on, i dont have to see the inside of their homes.

 

i was fishing down in the carbondale area, climbed down a ridge and there were a 1/2 doz glass beer bottles on the rocks, lunch wrapers, pop cans and cigarette butts.

 

obviously they didnt carry it all down with out bag, how hard is it to put it all back in the back and take it back up the hill. i smoke when i fish and butts go in my vest pocket.

[loyaleddie]

[sarcasm]

 

I will tell you why people don’t clean up after themselves. Because SRD will do it, or you (the community) will. Why should I waste my precious time and effort lugging all that *hit up when I can rely on the efforts of countless volunteer hours, or a paid work crew to do it for me? Hey, after all I pay taxes, and that is where I see the money should be spent. So keep on organizing your “Bow River Clean Up’s” and I will keep throwing my garbage too and fro’.

 

[/sarcasm]

[Guest RedWiggler]

I disagree with that. Personally I think the folks that do stuff like this are younger folks that just dont give a *hit, I would be amazed if they even considered for a second that someone besides them would clean it up. Anyways its a dam shame but unfortunately this problem will never end as long as people inhabit the earth, some people just dont care and that will never change.

[bigbowtrout]

I say we should load it in a truck and dump it back on there lawns

[rusty]

I say we should load it in a truck and dump it back on there lawns

 

Oh man...I like that idea.

[trailhead]

[i disagree with that. Personally I think the folks that do stuff like this are younger folks that just dont give a *hit, I would be amazed if they even considered for a second that someone besides them would clean it up. Anyways its a dam shame but unfortunately this problem will never end as long as people inhabit the earth, some people just dont care and that will never change.

 

I have to disagree with the statement that it's younger folks. I say two guys that had to be in their late forties/early fifties leave most of a six pack of empties, took the one or two full ones back with them, plus cigarette butts and food wrappers on the banks of the Elbow. They were chucking hardware so weren't fly fishers, again we generalize. But this all reminds me of a random camp I found on the Oldman. There was a pile of *hit, literally, about 2 feet high and 3 feet around and the remnants of all their garbage and food. I do not think random camping should be allowed for more than 3 days. They should have SRD come around and chase them all off at regular intervals through the summer and have some type of registration system. Right now you have to register to back country camp, but not random camp.

[lonefisher]

I gotta say most of the largest/longterm random camps usually seem to be older folk. Young people work and usually only have the big camping trips over long weekends..... they still leave a ton of crap around when they do go out but the people living out there all summer usually seem to me to be older(then me). One funny thing I have noticed, which could be the solution to the hordes of people random camping, is the number of RV's I bet they outnumber tents 25-1....... Ban RV's outside of actual campgrounds and these areas's would be empty and the long term campers would be non existant.... I don't know if thats reasonable but I have kinda stopped worrying about whats reasonable these days as it seems no one else worries much about it either.

[Ricinus]

I don't know if thats reasonable but I have kinda stopped worrying about whats reasonable these days as it seems no one else worries much about it either.

 

Boy, ain't that the truth!!!

 

Regards Mike

[DonnieM]

Absolute sillyness. I'm down with the calling the Herald or Sun idea, let them do a feature on it. Definately an issue that needs to be hammered home, especially with our great city of Calgary getting larger by the day and the fact that so many people have such a blatant disregard for the beauty of our backyard which is slowly being turned into a trash heap.

[reevesr1]

I can't remember where I was, but it was a bc stream around Invermere/Canal Flats area. Came up on 6 beer cans. I just looked at them in absolute disbelief.

 

Unfortunately, I meant to pick them up on the way out and forgot. Probably still there.

 

I was fishing another creek several weeks ago with a couple of guys, one of them visiting from Ireland. One of them asked "who's left their water on the rock" as we were leaving. I turned around and the person was me. But I had left it there 2 weeks prior! Only litter I've ever seen on that creek, and it was mine. Pretty weak.

[bulltrout]

it's sad to hear about the few ignorant pricks that do that stuff rather than the majority who do their share to leave it nicer than when they got there...funny how the more populated Alberta gets, the more problems there are...thank you booming economy...

[dryangler]

I wanted to suggest to the SRD that we use the credit card # on the receipt I found in the tent to pay for the clean up. I expect this camp was made by adults as it had been accessed many times by quads.

[ladystrange]

Only litter I've ever seen on that creek, and it was mine. Pretty weak.

 

at least you got the chance to pick it up and take it with you the next time around. we all make mistakes. but it is the jerks and ignorant a$$es who make a point of choosing to leave their garbage behind for everyone else.

[Bobr]

You could always "accidentally" post the CC number on the Web somewhere......

[bhurt]

I see garbage all the time through out the city section of the bow river, if you can't keep your backyard clean why are you surprised then when you find garbage elsewhere!