19th Annual St Johns River Cleanup

ST. JOHNS RIVER CLEANUP

 

On Saturday, April 18, 2015, we participated in the 19^th Annual St. Johns River Cleanup. Volunteers could choose to sign up at one of eight different starting points, which included:  Ninemile Point Park, Butler Street Boat Ramp in Astor, Ed Stone Park in DeLand, French Avenue boat launch/Starks Landing in Orange City, Lake Monroe Park in DeBary,  Lemon Bluff boat ramp in Osteen or C.S. Lee Park in Geneva. We chose to “clean up” at the Deleon Springs State Park location.

            Volunteers were given spiffy t-shirts with a picture of a river otter (I chose an awesome baby blue shirt), a water bottle, reuseable bag and various other mementos. We checked in, got our goodies and set out in our kayaks with our grabbers, a trash bag and a mission: get as much trash as we could!

            While paddling along the banks in search of trash, I took some pictures of a tri-colored heron that didn’t seem to be bothered by me getting closer and closer to it. 

 

Further down the way I was mesmerized by several osprey that were divebombing into the water and resurfacing with fish in their talons. I guess it didn’t hurt that the fish would periodically “jump” out of the water as if they were daring the birds to catch them. In between I pulled a foam noodle out of the water and half a cracked plastic bucket that had probably been used to hold bait and then tossed into the river. The other paddlers pulled out a plastic chair, a beach ball and a 2 x 4 piece of wood with nails in it. 

        We passed many other birds and creatures trying to blend in with the reeds.

          We paddled across Mud Lake and decided to get out at the Audobon  Lookout tower for lunch. Getting out of the water and up the bank was a bit of a challenge. We concocted a “plank” with the 2 x 4 piece of wood and tied the kayaks together to form a bridge. The plastic bucket was even flipped upside down and used as a stepping stone. One by one we all got out of our kayaks and made our way to the tower. There were a few hikers that stopped by, but we had the tower to ourselves for the most part and enjoyed a breezy, shaded lunchspot watching a great blue heron preening itself, a family of sandhill cranes walking along the trail and an alligator bathing itself in the shallow canal by the trail.

   

         On our way back to the park, we saw a Limpkin poke its head out of the greenery and heard little peeps – out popped a baby limpkin’s head! I wasn’t able to get a picture because it quickly camoflauged itself back into the brush and disappeared. Several bottles and beer cans were scooped up en route to the take-out.High above in a tree was a nest with a mother and father Great Blue Heron peering below at us. A cormorant bravely swam closeby in the water never flinching as I paddled past it. 

             We collected about three bags of trash (in addition to the beach ball, 2 x 4 piece of wood and foam noodle)….happy we didn’t find more than that! Participating in this clean up and also reading the recent post by Mike Rowe, host of the television show “Someone’s Gotta Do It,” in which he poses the big question: “What if the Big Gulp on the side of the road is a "broken window?" If you don’t know what he’s talking about, read more here: https://www.facebook.com/TheRealMikeRowe/posts/977287775614699

 From now on, anytime I’m out, whether I’m paddling, hiking or walking from my car in the parking lot to the grocery store, if I see trash I’ll do my part to pick it up….will you?