Downtown Minneapolis Homeless Camp

 

I periodically walk up the short trail that leads to this downtown Minneapolis camp.  There is a nice view of the river from here.  Few people living in downtown would even know this camp exists as they run or bike along the trail below. Throughout the spring, summer and fall there are often folks camping here.  With temperatures falling as we approach our coldest months only the foolish might consider camping outside as an alternative to going to a homeless shelter. I think we have reached that point with the weather now.  As people move in and out of this camp, trash gets pushed further and further down the hill.  Whose property is it?  Who is responsible?  It has become an unauthorized urban landfill.  This habitat, these wooded areas along the Mississippi River are also home to birds and animals and they deserve better than this. When you think about it, with humans out of the woods, this is exactly the time of year to get this place cleaned up.  I don't think we have to wait until Earth Day to do something about this disaster.

 

It's feeling like a dirty world out there.  Not happy about the election results and the direction that our country is headed.  Where are we going in terms of climate policy and environmental regulations?  In any case, I can still work on my personal goals in not sending Minnesota trash downstream to other states.

We are having a wonderfully mild fall here and with the leaves off the trees and shrubs it is much easier to see things that need to be picked up.

The song that was running through my head this last week was 99 bottles of beer in the woods, 99 bottles of beer, la, la, la.  I picked up more than that.  Much more.   The warm fall weather tends to bring more folks out into the park.

Dirty and wet blankets, no one is coming back for this stuff.

 

Park and Rec trash barrel lid.  Another night time Frisbee game.

I thought I was just about done for the day when I came across this mess.  (Fuck-a-doodle was the thought that was going through my mind as I still had that damn song in my head.)

I was out of bags, but noticed there were several wet, partially submerged bags in the river.  So I got a stick and dragged them out.  When I emptied the water out of one bag, $8.25 in quarters poured out along with the dirty river water into the sand!  Thanks.  I'll take it.