Soggy Bottom Boys Perform At A Rained-Out Quarry

 “Neither rain nor mud nor gloom of cloudy skies stays these volunteers from the swift completion of their dedication to stewardship”!

Twelve responsible target shooters endured the showery elements to perform their stewardship magic at the rained-out Miller’s Quarry gravel pit, near Welches Oregon, this past Saturday, October 10, 2020.  Armed with implements of trash removal, they pressed on through the relentless onslaught of rain.  And they got wet.  Very wet!

The grass roots cleanup effort was started by a member of the website forum NorthwestFirearms dot com, Tim Huber.  He put out a call for help to clean up one of his favorite places to shoot and was quickly joined by several others who share the same values and concerns.  Knowing quite well, of the poor weather conditions, they stuck to their guns and got it done!

The Miller’s Quarry gravel pit has been a source of contention between nearby residents and target shooters for some time now.  Noise and trash are at the heart of the conflict.  The noise part could be improved if shooters would consider more reasonable hours for shooting, (like late start mornings and done early evenings).  Suppressors would be ideal, however, price and availability inhibit their use.  The trash part should not even happen, as it is every user’s responsibility to remove what they brought in.  Continuous monitoring, reporting and maintenance are very important to this, and any, kind of recreation.

As with most all types of recreation, the responsible users are not the problem.  It’s the ones who either don’t value ownership in the land, don’t make the effort to educate themselves of the rules, haven’t yet developed a firm set of ethics, or perhaps simply don’t care.  Many of these users can be reached through education and information, however there are some who just will not listen.  Responsible users are those who learn the rules, recreate responsibly, practice regular stewardship and help improve recreation through communication to other users.  It is good to see this kind of involvement from responsible target shooters, hunters and shooting sports enthusiasts.

This cleanup was assisted by Clackamas County Dump Stoppers, who dedicated their dump truck, and one of their finest employees Charlie, all day to the cause of quality recreation for all.  Thank you, Dump Stoppers and Charlie!

We also appreciate the BLM for their daily work to provide and improve quality recreation opportunities to all who visit our public lands.

 

 The Trash No Land organization provided an appreciation BBQ lunch and several volunteers were also members of Trash No Land.

Our twelve volunteers performed a much-needed service in the midst of a rained-out quarry.  They went home with pride in their hearts and some real soggy bottoms!  Thank you all!