Block Island, RI, June 24, 2012

2 Hands, 3 Hours -- Hike through Rodman's Hollow Trail to the Ocean

How refreshing to only find 3 pieces of litter in about 3 miles of hiking on this beautiful greenway trail.  

We hiked to the edge of the bluff and were rewarded with this gorgeous ocean view.

Block Island is beautiful with lots of open vistas.  It has 28 miles of walking trails and 43% of the island is preserved thanks to Block Island Conservancy and The Nature Conservancy.  The island is about 11 square miles and is situated 12 miles south of the coast of Rhode Island. It has 350 freshwater ponds and ground water is the island's only source of water so Block Island is very conscious about conserving water, keeping the water free from contaminants and litter prevention. Wish more tourist were aware, especially about cigarette butt litter. I saw lots of littered butts in trafficked Old Harbor and at the airport.

Spotted this visual reminder at  Pond and Beyond Tours and Rentals  (a kayak rental). Asked several people and they were sure this was created by Corrie. Thanks, Corrie, for this great reminder!

2 Hands, 20 Minutes:  West Beach

This was a secluded spot for viewing the sunset and a little litter pickup. This beach was littered with entire car engines and large pieces of heavy rusted metal objects. There were a few cigarette butts and bottle caps, but not many.

Didn't seem to be a lot of litter left behind by beach goers, but there were lots of balloons. I  picked up 6 and there were two more caught in bushes behind a fence that I couldn't get to.

Block Island, as a whole, is pretty clean, yet there doesn't seem to be anyplace, anywhere, that is completely litter-free. Was happy to do some small litter cleanups to help keep this very special island beautiful.