Author Archives: Neil Frost

Our band of loyal volunteers turned up on time and ready to get started on another OWL litterpick.

A nice day for it! Safety briefing over we set off.

Depending on how you define litter it’s interesting what we find!

Three teams of volunteers ranged far and wide across all of the cruising area. Although lots of the undergrowth has been cut back it’s good to see that there are areas that haven’t been and are still being well-used.

Oh dear – not that old “Sorry, not tonight, I’ve got a headache” excuse!!

After lots of hard work by all three teams it was time to bring all of the litter back to base.

Then time for well-earned refreshments and a chat.

Before taking today’s haul to the road for collection by our friendly Epping Forest colleagues.

In the last month our solo litterpickers have been dutifully out and about collecting the equivalent of 42 small sacks (what some stars!) and we reckon today we collected the equivalent of 19 small sacks. That gives a total this month of the equivalent of 61 small bags of litter.

                    Please note that we respect everyone’s right to anonymity and only show pics of those willing to have them posted. There might have been more OWL volunteers taking part than are in the above pictures.

No inferences should be drawn from anyone’s participation in an OWL litterpick.

A litterpick that started to the sounds of chainsaws coming from the woods. The continuation was underway of what is described as ‘Habitat Restoration’ (a programme fully documented elsewhere on our website) but which also has the effect of removing much of the useful cover of some of the paths and the removal of some useful private areas.

Our group of seven trusty volunteers headed out across the woods to collect whatever litter they could. We are used to it all. Bottles and cans of all descriptions. Sexual debris including condom and lube sachets, used condoms, tissues and wipes, the occasional vinyl glove.

After a considerable time collecting what was on the ground, in the bushes and in the rubbish sacks it was time to bring it all back. 

   Time for a catch-up and welcome refreshments. 

Then the tying of the sacks and carrying them to the road for our good friends, the Epping Forest Keepers, to collect the following morning. Today’s haul – the equivalent of 17 original-size rubbish sacks.

In the last month our solo litterpickers have been dutifully out and about collecting the equivalent of 32 original-size sacks. That gives a total this month of 49 bags of litter.

Please note that we respect everyone’s right to anonymity and only show pics of those willing to have them posted. There might have been more OWL volunteers taking part than are in the above pictures.

No inferences should be drawn from anyone’s participation in an OWL litterpicking session.

Another first Tuesday of the month. Another OWL group litterpick. Seven willing volunteers keen to remove unsightly and, offensive to some, litter.

Health and Safety briefing over our vounteers set off.

As well as empty bottles and cans, tissues, condom and lube foils and so on we also find other things – like this industrial-size Nitrous Oxide container.

Whatever was that doing in the woods? (of course we know what it had been doing!)

Our volunteers covered all parts of the cruising ground. 

It wasn’t all about litterpicking. We want to keep access open (!) and our hard working volunteer was out and about with his trimmer.

For ten years, at our own expense, we’ve positioned a bin in the woods at a place where many guys gather or walk through. It’s been well-used. We’ve recently been emptying it 3 times per week.

Sadly, someone has complained about the bin and Epping Forest personnel have removed it! We think that’s short-sighted as, without a bin, people are still going to leave rubbish. Our current OWL policy is that we won’t pick up litter left where our bin would have been. We hope the person who complained is pleased with the effect.

With such efficient volunteers we’d soon got the area clear of all litter – for now – and it was time to get back to base and enjoy a chat and some welcome refreshments. One of our volunteers had been up all night doing some baking!

Then the task of tying the sacks and putting them ready for collection beside the road. Today we’d collected the equivalent of 18 of our small-sized bags.

Our Solo OWLS have been doing a brilliant job, working on their own between litterpicks. In the last month they’d collected the equivalent of 51 small sacks. Amazing! That gives a total this month of 69 sacks of litter.

 Please note that we respect everyone’s right to anonymity and only show pics of those willing to have them posted. There might have been more OWL volunteers taking part than are in the above pictures.

No inferences should be drawn from anyone’s participation in an OWL litterpicking session.

Many of us like some hot action in the woods. Today we all got it. Six of us litterpicking in the cruising area.

Having met at the corner of the Snaresbrook Road car park we headed off into the woods, the intention being to empty the rubbish bags and bin and pick up litter on the ground and in the bushes.

There were plenty of tissues to pick up in some of the hotspots. Such a shame that some guys don’t use the litter sacks and bins around the place.

Hot work. And strange what we find in the woods. Maybe someone was looking for a long screw(thread)?

Between the six of us we covered all of the hotspots and the areas in between. It was good to be thanked by several passers-by for the litterpicking we do.

 Having done all we could in those hot temperatures it was time to stop and have some refreshments. Cold drinks were appreciated! 

After a bit of a chat we’d had enough of litterpicking in this hot weather and it was time to tie up the bags and place them at the roadside ready for collection by the Epping Forest Rangers.

Today we’d collected the equivalent of 22 of our small-sized bags.

Plus 34 collected by our Solo OWLS, giving a total this month of 56 bags of litter.

By way of an explanation, why do we refer to ‘the equivalent of our small-sized bags’?? When OWL started we used much smaller rubbish sacks. We still use them in the Hot Spots to make it easy for guys to get rid of unwanted sexual debris. When we changed over to the larger sacks for collecting litter (much easier to use) we wanted to be able to compare our current days’  hauls with previous sessions. To make fair comparisons we needed to use one measuring system. Hence the ‘small bag equivalent’. Or ‘SBE’ in OWL jargon.

                    Please note that we respect everyone’s right to anonymity and only show pics of those willing to have them posted. There might have been more OWL volunteers taking part than are in the above pictures.

No inferences should be drawn from anyone’s participation in an OWL litterpicking session.

Volunteers’ Week. And thankfully six of our finest volunteers turned up for today’s OWL litterpick.

 Health and Safety briefing over we headed off, two teams in two directions, to clean up the cruising ground.

The bin we’ve installed gets good use. Much better to throw rubbish in the bin than chuck it on the ground. Thanks to those who use the bin.

There has been some serious growth since last month’s OWL litterpick. Including in the vegetation. So the trusty trimmer was in use. If you want your bush trimmed this is the gadget to use!

Some overgrown paths are now free to use.

Sadly the battery ran out before all paths could be opened up. We’ll be back.

In the meantime litterpicking continued.

Until it was time to take a break and have some refreshments.

Then for some of us back for more. There was no lack of litter.

Finally bags tied up and placed by the road ready for collection.

The sack-count this month? The equivalent of 23 sacksful collected today. Plus 32 collected by our solo litterpickers. Making a total this month of 55 sacksful of litter.

Please note that we respect everyone’s right to anonymity and only show pics of those willing to have them posted. There might have been more OWL volunteers taking part than are in the above pictures.

No inferences should be drawn from anyone’s participation in an OWL litterpicking session.