Massive Success At Baykeeper San Rafael Canal Clean
This past Sunday March 8th the San Rafael Canal saw over 50 paddlers take to the water in an effort to clean up this jewel of a water way. And clean up they did - big time! (pictured above the growing trash pile - all photos credited Ron Steinau)
Wow what a turnout! With over 50 paddlers taking to the water it was our most massive clean out ever. The event started as the brain child of Jen Fuller of Jen Fuller Fitness. After enlisting the help of Baykeeper San Francisco Jen marshaled the troops to combine two of her passions – paddling & making the world a better place.(pictured at right the ring leader)
Joining Jen in the effort was OnboardSUP Yoga & SUP Currents who helped along with Baykeeper to get the word out. 101 Surf Sports stepped up offering free kayak rentals and stand up paddleboard rentals to anyone wanting to take to the water and lend a helping hand as well as hauling the trash off to the dump. Also helping was the He'e Nalu 6 person Outrigger Canoe that hauled trash from the Pickleweed Park Clean Up Crew all the way back to 101 Surf Sports so we could dispose of it. In the spirit of Ohana the Tamalpais Outrigger Canoe Club jumped in to help. They worked on land at Pickleweed Park as well as helped ferry the garbage back to 101 Surf Sports. Canoebage Trucks. THANK YOU!
And help they did with about 7 to 800lbs of trash being put where it belongs – the dump. Speaking of the dump a shout out to Marin Resource recovery center who gave us a huge discount in dumping what was an entire van full of sea junk.
While we are handing out thank yous we have to hand one to all the paddlers who got in on the action with some special thanks to Dave Hook, Ron Steinau, Janice Callahan & Frank Bartek who helped market the event as well as handle the post event clean up. Another big nod to the City of San Rafael and Carla Koop who pitched in all the supplies. It's a forward looking city that gets down in the dirt and mobilizes its citizens to take care of their own town.
While some fun was had by all it was Renee Hoyer Nielson who summed up the day with "fun, disgusting, and rewarding". If you want to be part of the solution of making San Francisco Bay a cleaner place we have some upcoming options.
Option 1 – Earth Day Clean Up at 101 Surf Sports Saturday April 25th - Free Kayak and Stand Up Paddleboard rentals. Click Here
Option 2 – Make a donation to Baykeepeer San Francsico. Click Here
Option 3 – Get Connected and Sign up for the Baykeeper Newsletter. Click Here
Option 4 - Get educated. Check out these tips for a healthier San Francisco Bay. Click Here
Ofcourse feel free to exercise all your options. Thanks again to everyone who pitched in and see you at the next one.
Complete Photo Gallery Courtesy Ron Steinau - Click Here