Summit County: A dirty little secret

Posted on October 29, 2011 by Bob Berwyn

Opinion: Let’s show more respect to the land that gives so much

It’s unbelievable to me that people can treat a place like this with so little respect.

A red-shafted flicker died after entangling itself in a stray piece of fishing line.

By Bob Berwyn

SUMMIT COUNTY — Many mornings in the past couple of years I’ve headed down to my favorite spot along the shore of Dillon Reservoir early in the morning, right after dropping my son off at school. It’s not far — less than a mile from our house in Frisco — the dogs can run safely and the views are great. I always come back with a good photo or three and I’ve shared many of them with Summit Voice readers. Click here to see the photos from Friday morning.

The thing that I haven’t shared in photos or words about this place is really a dirty little secret. That stretch of shoreline that produces so many good photos is essentially an open-air dump. In the past couple of months, I’ve hauled away several over-sized bags of garbage, including countless fast food wrappers and bags, old clothes, discarded cans and bottles, makeshift camping gear and, sadly, probably a few hundred feet of fishing line, often with hooks, lures and lead weights still attached.

I usually don’t mess with the human waste that’s piled up in the aspen groves and pine stands, but I do pick up after our dogs.

I headed down there again Friday morning, eager to take pictures of the mists hanging over the water. After a few minutes of shooting pictures, I noticed that one of the dogs was trying to chew on a dead bird. I shooed him away and saw that the bird had a tangle of fishing line wrapped around its wing. The other end of the line was snagged on a log. (more…)

Filed under: Colorado, commentary, Dillon Reservoir, fishing, Frisco, public lands, recreation, Summit County Colorado, wildlife | Tagged: , , , , | 1 Comment »

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