MEEKER | After weeks of removing trash and abandoned camping equipment from hunting camps, the Blanco Ranger District is reminding hunters to follow the basic camping rule of packing out what you pack in.
“We have hunter patrols in place to greet hunters and help answer questions, but they are spending much of their time over the past three weeks cleaning up trash hunters have left,” said Blanco Ranger District Curtis Keetch. “We work hard to provide a good experience for hunters and other forest visitors, but we need visitors to help us out.”
Keetch asks hunters and other recreationists to pack out everything they bring into the forest, including trash, carpet used for wall tent flooring, chairs and other camping equipment. If it wasn’t there when you arrived, it shouldn’t be there when you leave.
“It may seem obvious that leaving trash and abandoning equipment leaves an unsightly and unsanitary mess for the next group who want to use the site, yet our crews have to pick up literally hundreds of pounds of trash left by hunters each year,” Keetch said. “This pulls them away from other activities they could be doing to manage the Forest and its facilities.”
Special to the Herald Times
