Extremely cold is how it felt out today. As a result I kept the trash clean-up local and short. I headed to State Gamelands 227 with Penny we quickly got started and on the trail.
Just off of the parking lot I spotted this back in the brush. It looks like two containers filled with a mystery liquid, possibly used oil. In order to get this removed I have to report it to the Game Commission and hopefully they will send someone out for it. Not knowing what it is or how long it has been there, I won't deal with it. If the jugs have been there awhile they will be brittle and will break apart as soon as their touched. Not cool at all.
This is how most of the trash off the main trail was found. Tossed into thick sometimes thorny brush, it isn't as fun as a barrel of monkey's to pick up some of these items.
I picked up about a half dozen Chinese Mantis Oothecas along the trailside. The Chinese Mantis is a non-native species here in Pennsylvania and we have no native mantis species. The Chinese Mantis is an exceptional predator and eats just about anything it can catch and kill. So they don't just go after pest insect species, they also eat a lot of our pollinators and other beneficial insects. For this reason I remove their oothecas (egg masses) when I come across them. Our pollinators have enough problems, they don't need a super predator after them that doesn't belong.
Although it was cold the Little Schuylkill River was spectacular with icicles hanging over its banks in spots.
If I hadn't seen this can I would have been a little happier. Not only was it in the water, but was full of mud and needed to be rinsed out. It was way to cold for that, but I did it anyway.
Penny's paw is doing much, much better. I know I said in previous posts that she was done with coming with me on trash clean-ups, but I couldn't do that to her. She loves the hikes and seemed to have a great day today.
Anyone need a stereo? This was not something I could get with Penny along and is tucked behind thick brush. When I go back I think I will try to remove it and put it by the parking lot. I know that isn't taking it completely out, but I would at least like to see it away from the Little Schuylkill.
Not a really long hike, still trash. The recycling sort from these cold days are not something I will be looking forward to. A lot of items have frozen contents in them that I will have to empty when they thaw. If tomorrow is as cold as today I can't guarantee I will be out taking out the trash. I may just take Penny for a hike.
You too can help with taking out the trash! If you get out hiking take a grocery bag with you, give it a second use and fill it with trash while you are out! Every bit helps. You can also help contributing to this project here: Help Fund Taking Out the Trash
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