immigrants

[Tony]

I haven't been down in a while. Anyone see any tents?

http://www.journal-news.net/page/con...id/562735.html

From Blue Ridge
Mountains:
Just wondering where the DNR was the past couple days at Shenandoah Springs along the river on Mission Road? There were immigrants camping or living in tents, when there is no camping allowed. We pay taxes, buy fishing licenses and try to keep our children off the streets to take them to do that sort of stuff, and you can't even get to the river because of it.

[Willis]

Well it IS the Journal Junction. Questions beg - Did the person call Law Enforcement? Where were they camping? the WMA is comprised of over 600 acres. Was it actual camping or just canopies set up for picnic purposes? The report makes it sound as though there were so many that access to the river was obstructed. I'm not discounting the report, but as with many posts in the Journal Junction, its short on details. While there are sometimes similar posts on S&B, at least we have the luxury of asking for answers in thread. If any of you guys see a similar situation, call LE, make a note of the time of the call AND get the name of the operator and any dep to whom you speak and check back to see if any action was taken.

[Willis]

Update

I stopped down at the boat ramp and encountered a young lady who said there were half a dozen cars with Hispanics in the ramp/parking lot area yesterday. But she saw no camping/living. I saw no remnants of campsites. W/o more information I'd, as the Mythbusters would say, "Busted".

However, there were the seemingly requisite kitchen and plastic grocery bags stuffed and neatly tied waiting for either us poor residents to collect or more likely, to be torn asunder by wild animals and strewn from stem to stern over the area.

It would be nice to have the time and authority to sit there on a Sunday evening and arrest anyone who leaves their crap (in some cases literally) sitting beside the landing and lot for the trash fairy to pick up

[Starbuck]

I was there with both kids Saturday...ran into some friends along the way, and saw some other groups on the way back, but nothing scary. Unless some new warning has come out regarding the elderly and tweens?

[hillbilly]

Saturday I went just below the dam on the Shenandoah and that was where all the hispanics were, cooking, swimming, picnicing. Does that happen every weekend?

[caroline]

Saturday I went just below the dam on the Shenandoah and that was where all the hispanics were, cooking, swimming, picnicing. Does that happen every weekend?

Sounds like a fun way to enjoy the day and a nice use of the area.

[KatherineA]

Unfortunately, they leave a lot of trash there. I went by on Tuesday and that area by the dam was just awful. filled with sacks and piles of trash not in even in bags.

I was wondering about BRILLO creating some kind of small flier in Spanish and English that basically says, please take your trash home, there is no public trash pickup here. Please help keep this area clean for the next human and wildlife visitors. And take them around some Sat and Sunday later in the afternoon and hang out for awhile at the dam or/and at the Springs parking lot.

[derricksonb]

Unfortunately the type of people who are already leaving trash for others to clean up will probably disregard a nicely worded flyer of use it to roll a monster doobie.

[KatherineA]

You are probably right, but . . . It is a thought I've had for awhile. I think it would be worth a try even though we would probably just have to go back the next day and pick up all the fliers dropped on the ground.

[OzGirl]

All that would need to happen is Mt White from DNR to show up for several weekends in a row and on a regular basis there after and the problem would be reduced greatly....

[Tony]

I made a flyer a couple years back and tacked them to the two boards at the two southern WMAs. They didn't last long outside but the basic idea was to let people know they were expected to pack out their own trash; there was no trash service. I didn't think about bilingual and I don't think I ever put one at the boat ramp.

[Willis]

Back in Time to 2008

Back in 2008 a Hispanic kid drowned at the boat ramp at S'dale Springs. He didn't know how to swim and wasn't wearing a PFD. S&B thought at the time that a "Dangerous Water" type sign might be a good idea. We had a sign made and mounted it:

The next day (or maybe two) our neighbors who obviously objected to protecting the lives of other than English speaking water lovers defaced the sign

And there was quite a bit of vitriolic commentary on our forums (search swimming sign). We decided a pictorial representation would satisfy our more xenophobic neighbors and I approached grafxgirl with an idea

Thankfully, GG had a better idea and we installed the sign below

It actually lasted most of the Summer before it was vandalized.

The lesson learned was any attempt to communicate danger or pride (as pertains to cleanliness in the case of the crowd at the power plant) in a bilingual way will likely last the same length of time. And even if the signage survives bigotry, it will fall victim to vandals.

[Cissey]

There is someone living in a tent behind the old house that recently burned as you turn onto the river road. We noticed is a few weeks ago. Who or how many are living there is hard to say.

Our littering is a multi-cultural problem in this area so I do not blame it 100% on our Hispanic community. If the DNR had more presence at the river and spoke with the groups that gather there it may make a difference but it could also mean they just take their trash with them and dump it along Mission Road or elsewhere.

West Virginia is such a joke with their ads for tourism...perhaps the recent ad should include photos of the trash along Route 9.

[LFE]

Led Zeppelin - Immigrant Song (Live Video)

[lar]

Unfortunately, they leave a lot of trash there. I went by on Tuesday and that area by the dam was just awful. filled with sacks and piles of trash not in even in bags.

I was wondering about BRILLO creating some kind of small flier in Spanish and English that basically says, please take your trash home, there is no public trash pickup here. Please help keep this area clean for the next human and wildlife visitors. And take them around some Sat and Sunday later in the afternoon and hang out for awhile at the dam or/and at the Springs parking lot.

That's what I am talking about in the other thread. I too have thought why doesn't the power company or someone put up a big billboard "Take your trash with you" is that really too much to ask? It seems to me they used to at least bag it.

[lar]

A little off topic but I don't want to open a thread, it is not immigrants, but I saw Park Police/Police ticketing people in the no parking zone on the 340 stretch between the bridges. That too becomes a trashy spot.

[Nanuk]

If the illegal aliens were not here, neither would their trash be. Sadly, that's the sort of people who cross our border. They have no respect for our laws or our customs, so why should they respect our property? I'm serious in that we need ICE sweeps of these areas and anyone found here without US citizenship needs to be scooped up right then and there and held pending deportation proceedings.

[TheChipmunks]

Ok everyone let's cool it with the labeling and such. I am sure we Gringos leave our share of trash places we go as well.

While I may be unpopular for saying this, we are ALL allowed to use the river provided we keep it neat and safe for all. I DO hate seeing garbage and diapers (gag!) when I drive down Bloomery, which I do frequently just to look at the river and geese.

That being said, I like the bi-lingual signage idea. It could help. And we could all do better to stop attributing the trash to one particular group or heritage. Peace!

[Steveo]

Didn't Immigration officials and local LE go thru that area a couple of years ago looking for Gang activity? Chipmunk sadly Nanuk is more right about this than you think, and I am not a gringo since I was never in the service and I always pack out my trash.

[lar]

I am not labelling all trash to all Spanish, but in that one particular place, it is all Spanish on the weekend. I work with Spanish decended people all day, everyday and I don't have an ounce of problem. Just saying their will to take THAT trash home has declined in the last one to two years. Personally I don't care if they use that property but I use Bloomery Road a lot myself for sightseeing and notice it.