ANAHOLA — Ron Bloy weaseled a rope loose from some rocks out near Anahola Bay on Saturday morning and decided to drag it back to the pickup because it would have taken up most of the room in his burlap sack.
“My wife and I, we live just over the hill,” he said. “We like to hike and be outdoors and we want to keep it clean.”
Bloy did take a moment to check out a monk seal in the nearby surf. Peter Dudley, who is visiting from Seattle with Diana Auirigmma, stopped to check out the seal as well. The Seattle pair heard about the beach cleanup and worked it into their schedule.
Auirigmma kicked off her shoes and settled into a spot near the water where she could reach plenty of marine debris.
“I’m sitting here, picking up these little pieces of plastic, and I was thinking about the Women’s March in Seattle,” Auirigmma said. “I’m not there; my friends are. But I’m here. And I’m doing something to make a difference right where I’m at.”
Also volunteering on vacation were Canadian visitors Sarka Pavisova and Mira Sandrik of Calgary. They added a tire and large metal poles to the pile of debris.
“This beach is where we camped last year, so we’re back to give back,” Pavisova said.
Over at Papaa Bay, Noreen Steinmetz of Kapaa came across a stockpile of old shoes in the bushes beside the beach path.
“It’s so amazing how everyone’s come together for this,” she said. “But it does really make you think about it — how do we stop using so much plastic?”
More than 200 kamaaina and visitors showed up on Saturday’s blustery morning at Anahola Beach Park for the second-ever beach cleanup sponsored by Surfrider Kauai, Sustainable Coastlines and the B-RAD Foundation.
The first event was held in 2013 at Hanalei Bay.
“We’re creating an experience that leaves volunteers aware of the amount of waste we’re creating and inspiring a decrease in the use of plastics,” said Kalie Pacarro of Sustainable Coastlines.
Volunteers were split into groups and taken either by bus or pickups to locations at Donkey Beach, Papaa Bay and Anahola Bay. After a couple of hours of removing old car seats, plastic bins, nets and tires, volunteers reconvened at Anahola Beach Park for lunch.
Kauai’s own Sashamon provided the music, Sustainable Coastlines brought the pizza and someone broke out a kite as volunteers settled into the grass to enjoy the afternoon.
“There’s another cleanup next weekend,” said Robert Zelkovsky of Surfrider. “That’s in Moloaa.”
Info: kauai.surfrider.org or call Barbara at 635-2593.
