Garbage on the Ice

[queenpdog]

This is only my second season ice fishing, but I dove in whole hog. I'm totally addicted. I have seen several posts about this in the past, and I just can't believe my eyes sometimes. I think maybe, just maybe someone that sees this will realize what they are doing and change their ways.

Coming off Parley yesterday we came across a spot where someone had set up their shack and the holes were pretty fresh. In the holes, they had stuffed 3 or 4 empty bags of chips, soda bottles, cigarette butts, dead perch, you name it. Some of the garbage had been deliberately pushed through the holes and under the ice, so there was no way to get them out. We fished out what we could get to and took it off the ice.

This is beyond carelessness. It is reckless disrespect for the fisheries and environment so many of us love. It made me absolutely sick. Again, I know this sounds like a broken record, and I am preaching to the choir. The folks here are probably not the type to do this sort of thing. I just don't know how to reach these fools to send the message that this is NOT okay.

I guess about all we can do is keep cleaning up after these idiots, and when we come across them try to educate them on this issue. If you have any other ideas, I'd like to hear them.

[harvey lee]

seems this problem never goes away. To bad one could not have gotten the name on the portable or truck license before they left.

Just think what our lakes and rivers would look like if all did this,

As you said, we can pick it all up and hope some change or grow up.

[Fowlmouth]

It ticks me off also when people throw their cig butts on the ice or in the water. SLOBS.

[DuckBlind]

This topic gets posted daily. It should be banned. Sick of reading about it. If you see garbage and don't like it, pick it up and go on with your day. It won't stop, some people are idiots. There are no solutions to fixing this problem. Please all let this topic die.

[queenpdog]

duckblind, you could take your own advice. If you don't like reading about it, don't read it. Just sayin.

[otterman91105]

I was on a lake the other day. You could see where someone had a house from before there was beer cans and garbage left behind just don't understand why people don't take it with them.

[JIvers]

Shore-fishing on open water or ice-fishing, I always bring a few empty plastic grocery bags with me, because I know I'll have to use them on someone else's trash. Just the way it is, because there will always be slobs.

And before anyone asks, yes, some people DO live that way at home.

[amateurfishing]

duckblind, you could take your own advice. If you don't like reading about it, don't read it. Just sayin.

+1

[Coon]

This is only my second season ice fishing, but I dove in whole hog. I'm totally addicted. I have seen several posts about this in the past, and I just can't believe my eyes sometimes. I think maybe, just maybe someone that sees this will realize what they are doing and change their ways.

Coming off Parley yesterday we came across a spot where someone had set up their shack and the holes were pretty fresh. In the holes, they had stuffed 3 or 4 empty bags of chips, soda bottles, cigarette butts, dead perch, you name it. Some of the garbage had been deliberately pushed through the holes and under the ice, so there was no way to get them out. We fished out what we could get to and took it off the ice.

This is beyond carelessness. It is reckless disrespect for the fisheries and environment so many of us love. It made me absolutely sick. Again, I know this sounds like a broken record, and I am preaching to the choir. The folks here are probably not the type to do this sort of thing. I just don't know how to reach these fools to send the message that this is NOT okay.

I guess about all we can do is keep cleaning up after these idiots, and when we come across them try to educate them on this issue. If you have any other ideas, I'd like to hear them.

keep up the good work mr. i try to do the same. real bummer though

[mn_al]

totally agree

[Down Deep]

I take a summer trip to Alaska each year. Each year I encounter volunteers who walk the shorelines of popular public river access areas. They pick up the lead, fishing line and other debris that fishermen leave behind. They also ask other fishermen to do the same when they are walking out. When I see this it reminds me to do what I can to retrive my line and tackle that breaks off due to snags and help by picking up after others.

When we pick up the garbage left by others we do a good turn for the lake and for others who will come to use the lake after we leave. I don't think there is any harm in walking around popular areas and encouraging others to do the same. For me this is a lot better way of looking at this issue rather than focusing on the inconsiderate idiots who left the mess.

[herefish101]

I just curse to myself as i pick up the idiods trash, it makes me feel better about it, plus the other night I scored a nice bucket with a padded lid, I figured it was payment for picking up the cans and empty propane bottles. Last year my buddy scored a heater/cooker half burried in the snow while he was picking up some idiots trash, so you never know, maybe one of these days i'll find a bag full of money....lol......

Keep up the good work everyone, and if you see some one leave trash behind, politley remind them to come back and pick it up.

[tunrevir]

As a rule, I always have extra trash bags along to pickup the area around me. It can pay dividends like others have mentioned when the trashers leave behind goodies for the folks that pick up after them. I have found lures, depthbombs, even a few frozen in tipups over the years just for picking up other peoples trash. One thing you can do when on the ice is call the tipline when you see permanent shacks that are spreading trash but not so easy to do in this day of the porty. Thanks to all of you that hold our natural resources in esteem and help make it better for the next guy, keep up the great work!

Tunrevir~

[fishersofmen]

Almost seems worse than ever this year. Every time out I am seeing garbage all over the place. Picked up a bunch of beer cans etc the other day. Unfortunately that is about all we can do is pick up after these slobs.

[jmg]

Queenpdog, thank you for doing the good deed out on one of my favorite little lakes. I think my family members and I have brought home more bags of trash than we've brought home fish from there over the years. It is a neat little lake, though, where my son caught his first fish(Crappie) and where my wife caught her biggest walleye. Due to its location in Carver Park, it almost feels like being on an "up North" lake, esp. in the Fall. It sure is a shame that in Winter or Summer, people think of our waters as their personal dumpsites. Often wonder if they do that at home, too. I guess all we can do is to try to set a good example for our kids and hope the next generations will be smarter about environmental issues. Good Luck fishin'!

[Stick in Mud]

Yup, this is a common complaint, and for good reason...this is a real problem. I expect that amount of "press" it generates from people on this site--the stuff that's annoying DuckBlind--is caused by the frustration this issue causes to those of us who care about our lakes. The only thing we can do is pick up, as many of us are.

For what it's worth, I was lucy enough to live in Alaska for a year, and I was also lucky enough to be one of the volunteers walking the rivers and picking up trash. It's AMAZING the stuff we found...nearly brand-new tents, adult sex toys, cases of beer, fishing lures, you name it. And one place I fish a lot here in Sartell has a garbage can--sponsered by the local Muskies, Inc., I believe--where people put their trash. I love the idea of putting garbage cans in these places, but I hate the fact that we need them.