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Beyond The Call of Duty

Recently a team from Beyond Adventure, a Highland Perthshire outdoor pursuits provider, took part in the Scottish Canoe Association’s “Clear Water” litter picking initiative. This national initiative aims to encourage a greater effort than normal to clear litter that gets left behind, or washes up on and around the places where canoeists paddle.

“We canoed the beautiful six mile stretch of the River Tay from Kenmore Beach down to Aberfeldy,” reported Laura McAuley. “We plucked carrier bags out of trees, and were yanking sections of plastic piping from banks, unraveling bits of rope and scooping glass bottles out of the water and we filled three canoes with rubbish!”
Much of what was rescued had been swept into tree branches during the winter floods, some of it a good 10 feet above the current water levels.
“The other river users we passed seemed tickled and impressed with our efforts,” Laura continued. “Arriving into Aberfeldy perched high on his throne of a rusty chair, one of the team had fashioned a work of modern art from the spoils, proving that litter picking can be entertaining as well as rewarding!”
Rubbish picks may not be the ultimate solution to the littering problem on our waterways, but undoubtedly the simple act of everyone picking up a piece of litter every time they go out makes a huge difference to the enjoyment of the area by paddlers, other river users and wildlife alike.