Let's get down and dirty.
Saturday, April 29th
Breakfast: 8:00 a.m.
Clean-Up: 9:00 a.m. (coordinates above)
It's time to join with our fellow cachers around the country and
clean up our neighborhoods. This year we will lag behind
Groundspeak and get out one week later than the national CITO day.
We are doing this in order to participate in the local Creek Week
Clean-Up Day. Creek Week is organized every year by the Sacramento
Urban Creeks Council of Sacramento. This event will take place even
if it rains.
Similar to last year, I am the Creek Week coordinator for the
Folsom area. Last year RCGDS did an outstanding job last year
cleaning up Gold Creek under the Orangevale Bridge. Unfortunately,
more trash has been dumped into the creek and it needs cleaning
again. Last year, while meeting with the City of Folsom
streets/creeks/drainage guy I asked, “Which location in Folsom
needs the most help?”
He looked at me and said, “There is one place in Folsom that is
so challenging that in 20 years has only been cleaned up four
times. Many prison crews have evaluated the location, but have
instead opted for easier locations. You would need a group that can
handle rough terrain, isn’t afraid of a scratch or two, and can do
things that most people would think is crazy.”
I wasn’t sure if he was talking about litter pick-up or quoting
“A Dirty Dozen”, but I looked him in the eye and said, “I think I
know or such a group… and they don’t wear orange overalls.” (I left
out the thing about kilts.)
The coordinates above are for the clean-up location. The
clean-up is from 9:00 a.m. to noon. The coordinates for the no-host
pre-cleanup breakfast rendezvous is:
N38 40.690
W121 13.777
This is Annie's at 8800 Greenback in Orangevale. The group will
meet there for breakfast at 8:00 am on Saturday, April 29th.
Trash bags will be provided. Another advantage of being a part
of the Creek Week Clean-up is that we can pile the trash bags and
shopping carts and other large items in the pull out spot by the
street and the City will pick it up on Monday.
I won’t be joining you for breakfast, but I will make sure a
logbook and trash bags are available at the clean-up site.
Only a small amount of parking is close by...more about a block
away. My gameplan is to get the supply of trash bags and the log
book to someone who will be attending the clean-up.
The bridge which was built in 1915, two years before Rainbow
Bridge, will be getting updated soon. Here is a link
http://www.folsomtelegraph.com/articles/2005/01/12/news/top_stories/03bridge.txt
Rules: To log as a find, show up. sign in, and clean from 9 to
noon. You will also need to sign the Creek Week sign-in sheet
(using a real name).
T-Shirts: If you sign-up in advance on this web page and include
your t-shirt size, you will get a Creek Week t-shirt.
For those of you interested, there is a Creek Week celebration
from noon to 2:00 at the Discovery Museum Science Center at 3615
Auburn Boulevard. Enjoy a picnic served by the Maharlika Lions
Club, live music by “Bonebag”, Earth-friendly exhibits and
interactive displays. You can even enter your clean-up finds in the
junk and gunk contest.
Some of you may be wondering what the junk and gunk contest
is... It is contest where the junk that you find is judged against
junk found by others. The more interesting the junk, the better. It
has evolved into a semi-art or sculpture contest with the winning
entries being a conglomeration of various items. Visualize a pay
phone body, with a paint bucket head, with bailing wire for arms,
holding a laundry basket with a one-legged G.I. Joe. The contest is
held at the Discovery Museum so you need to transport the junk
pieces. Also, you can't park at the museum next to the contest
location, so the items have to be carry-able (no old dishwashers).
Given that our creek site has not been cleaned in many years, I
would think we would find some interesting junk items.
Give it some thought if you want to enter. You do not need to
sign up in advance. Also, anyone can enter, it is not one entry per
clean-up site. The items do need to be found at the clean-up
site.
Checklist: (From Creeks Council- I know these will be obvious to
geocachers.)
Comfortable, washable clothes
Long pants and Long sleeves
Hat and sunscreen
Gloves (Work or gardening type)
Shoes that can get wet and muddy
Waterproof boots (optional)
Grabbing tool(optional)(I saw these at Home Depot for $20
yesterday.)
Jeo says to bring some bug repellant
All children must be with a responsible adult. There can be
hidden hazards in the debris, plus water and slippery stream banks
can be hazards. This creek looks tough for small children. If you
bring a child, your most important job is to supervise and keep
them safe. Collecting trash is secondary for adults in charge of
children. Thank you for making it possible for them to have this
experience.
Before and After pictures encouraged and appreciated.