Messy campers better on weekend
By Jennifer Feinberg - Chilliwack Progress - July 02, 2008
Burned out vehicles dotted the landscape and one of them almost started a forest fire, but long weekend campers caused less damage than usual in the Chilliwack River Valley.
“Even though I saw two recently burnt-out cars and an apparently stolen one with no plates, I thought the garbage issue looked better,” said Chris Gadsden of the Chilliwack-Vedder River Cleanup Coalition.
He had praise for the efforts of the Chilliwack River Valley Citizens on Patrol, and other agencies in enforcing the new no-camping and no overnight parking rules.
“Small steps are making a positive difference,” he said.
Gadsden estimated it cost him about $35 to drive up to Chilliwack Lake and back on Monday, with some stops along side roads to assess the area.
“Many campsites from Tamahi to Chilliwack Lake were in excellent shape and some campers had left their camping sites spotless,” he said.
But there’s more to be done to prevent illegal camping.
“I think we may need more campsites in the area especially now with the price of gas more people will try to camp closer to home,” he said. “Also the need for more Conservation Officers is high on my agenda as we I feel have not addressed the growing population growth here in the Lower Mainland.”
The area covered by Section 58, from the Vedder Bridge to Tamahi, was in good shape but he found one group of overnight campers hidden away by the Boulder Hole.
“The Bench Road area needs improvement and a lot of the garbage was still there
from the last long weekend.”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------