So I was out checking things on Wade Island while boating the other night (because, reasons......) and I noticed that it was covered in trash from the recent Boat Race weekend event, including empty glass bottles. I thought it would be fun to invite some local geocachers to come out here on my boat and clean it up! It would be a great way to meet some of the local cachers, should be a fun activity in and of itself, and we would be doing the area a service.
I emailed the US Army Corps of Engineers for permission and they would be glad of the help. USACE controls a lot of interesting land in this area and this is a good opportunity for us to stay in their good graces and leave a good impression of what geocaching is about. I asked if there were other "problem" areas we could help with and they mentioned Indian island just South of Sacajawea state park, so maybe if this event works well then we could plan for another one out there soon.
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So this is how it will work:
This will be a small CITO, as my boat is rated for 14 people (not including me), or else a weight limit. If some children are included in the signups then we can accomodate 14. If it's all adults I'll have to draw the line at 12 passengers on my boat. Therefore this will be a first-come, first-serve sign-up and you must include the number of people in your party and please indicate if some of them are young children (for weight-limit purposes only. Young children are totally welcome and safe to come). Once we hit the limit, my boat is full. You could still come hang out with us, though, if you wanted to meet us at the island by your own means.... Please state so in your signup.
We will meet at the Columbia Park Marina, located on Columbia Park Trail just East of Columbia Center Blvd. An alternate way to find this marina is to navigate to this geocache GC1EKX6 placed by our excellent Tumbleweed2. The cache is hidden somewhere in the parking lot. Also, parking coordinates are given in the Parking waypoint provided.
We will meet on Saturday, August 25th at 8:00 AM. I will plan to have the boat ready to go on the dock, so just walk out on the dock to my boat and hop aboard! The boat you're looking for is an Axis A22, white & green, white tower with speakers. I've included a stock photo with similar coloration in the photo gallery. We will allow approx 15 minutes for stragglers, then we will head to the island. Transit time is 10 minutes or less. I will have lifejackets available with me. Adults need not wear a lifejacket if they don't want to, but children under 14 and anyone who can't swim will be asked to wear one.
We will arrive before 8:30 AM, take a couple of minutes to secure the boat, and then spend probably 30-45 minutes maximum cleaning the island. Trash bags and boxes for glass will be provided. Bring gloves and wear shoes. I'm not gonna lie, vegetation is rather tight here, so be mentally ready for that. Long pants may be desirable. There is some shoreline this time of year usually, but water levels can vary, so wading up to ankle-deep may be needed in some places, as well. I'll be wearing Keene's water shoes which are fine for getting wet and also fine for a CITO-type activity.
Water and light snacks will also be provided (or feel free to bring your own). Yes, the boat should have plenty of cargo space to stow the trash for the return trip. I'll then put the trash in my pickup and dispose of it. We should be all done by 9:30 AM at the latest!
One small hangup on working with the government is paperwork... USACE would like us to fill out some forms. It's my intention to fill out 1 volunteer agreement form on behalf of the group, so don't worry about that one, but there's still the second roster form, and USACE will want a separate volunteer agreement form for each minor. I'll have those available to be filled out. Basically, yes, forms are annoying, but this is how USACE works, I'll walk you through it when you show up on Saturday. If you are not a minor then just sign the roster form. If you have minors then we should fill out another volunteer agreement form for each of them, and I'll help you with that, should just take a minute.
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Summary:
Only first 12-14 responders will be allowed on the boat, but others may attend if they can get to the island by other means.
Meet at Columbia Point Marina at 8:00 AM on Saturday, August 25th.
Provided: Trash bags, drinking water, light snacks, life jackets.
You bring: Gloves, shoes, consider wearing long pants.
Should be back to the marina (all done) by 9:30 AM.
Check the forms and make sure you're comfortable with that.