On Saturday, January 14, nearly 20 volunteers (and one dog!) from Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties came out to Santa Paula Canyon to remove trash from along a locally-popular trail leading to gorgeous waterfalls and swimming holes. It was a perfect day for a cleanup hike into the canyon: temperatures in the upper 60s and sunny–although a bit chillier in the shade of the canyon.
With some teamwork and ingenuity, our volunteers made it safely across Santa Paula Creek!
We started off the cleanup with a safety talk, saying hello to our furry cleanup companion, and a photo of most of the group. With trash bags, buckets, and water in hand, we set off into the canyon.
Santa Paula Creek was still experiencing high flow due to the recent rains. Our adventurous volunteers were unsurprisingly resourceful, finding the best ways to safely help each other across the creek.
Once in the canyon, the group blazed along the trail, picking up cans, bottles, and other trash along the way. We made it to another creek crossing 1.5 miles or so into the canyon, which prompted us to head back. On the way back to the highway, we found a party spot along the creek complete with a folding table and chairs. Some strong volunteers removed the table and chairs, which would have been washed downstream with the next big rain.
A table and some chairs were no match for these heavy lifters.
Thanks to these awesome Forest Stewards who dedicated their time on a weekend to helping pick up trash in this beautiful area! We estimate that because of their efforts, 200 lb of trash were removed on this four mile hike. Way to go!
If you’re interested in learning more about volunteer opportunities with ForestWatch and how you can join our Forest Steward Program, contact our Conservation Director, Bryant Baker, by emailing bryant@lpfw.org.
Check out more pictures from the cleanup:
Comments are closed.