I spent the morning helping the Nashville Hiking Meetup clean up part of the Volunteer Trail at Long Hunter State Park. The floods of May, by dumping all manner of detritus at the high water mark, provided a clear picture of the cumulative effect of littering. I noticed the problem on a recent backpacking trip along the Volunteer Trail, and I followed up by calling the Long Hunter Park office and asking about an organized cleanup. The park representative took my number and said she'd call back with some information, but I never heard a peep.However, I receive event notices from the Nashville Hiking Meetup, and as luck would have it, into my mailbox popped an email about the Volunteer Trail effort. So I showed up at 9 a.m., met Ranger Ponda and Jason (the event organizer and a naturalist at Long Hunter State Park), and off everyone went, trash bags in hand. In about three hours, the group gathered up thirty large-sized bags of trash and set them lakeside for pickup by boat. It was a pleasure to see the freshly picked trail on the hike back to the parking lot. However, we just scratched the surface, and miles of debris remain along the Volunteer Trail. I hope to see another similar event in the future.
2 comments:
Thank you for your community service! Everyone, including me, should take note and volunteer more.
I also appreciate your volunteer efforts. There is still much to be done on the banks and on islands of Percy Priest, but this certainly makes a dent. Long Hunter, Nashville Hiking Meetup, and the entire community applaud you and the other volunteers!
Post a Comment