I generally don't go around picking up litter or trash. I just don't. I was raised to clean up after myself and I have always done that when fishing, hunting, or doing anything else outdoors. I never leave anything behind.

I am on multiple outdoor forums and was recently tossed into the wood chipper, repeatedly called lazy and disrespecting the outdoors because I don't pick up other people's trash left behind. I thought it was a really low blow. After all, I'm not the source of the problem to begin with. So why am I being blamed for contributing to it?

How does everyone else here feel about picking up after others?

I do make an exception for wads of discarded fishing line. That stuff can wreak havoc on fish, wildlife, and props.

I netted an old can off the bottom of my pond and found a water bottle in the bog of my pond the last couple days. I like removing trash as much as I like catching bass.

If I picked trash up everywhere I went, some places I'd literally spend the whole time cleaning up and not be done.

I do clean up trash occasionally, depending. I almost always grab fishing line and lures/hooks. If I can do it without being a burden I will grab various small trash.

If there is plenty of trash and some of it is a bag, I will fill the bag and take it with me.

A lot depends on how much time I have available that trip, and also, how much room for trash I have.

For me it depends, I’ll pick up trash and throw it away if I’m close enough to a place to dispose of it.

With that said, I’m not gonna make it my sole purpose to pick up all the trash in the area, I’ll rather focus on fishing.

It’s a real shame that "leaving it better than you found it" has become such a rare concept for some folks.

We deal with the same thing—our property on either side of the driveway seems to be the

designated drop zone for the "drive-by-litter" crowd.

It’s always a predictable spread: a heavy rotation of Fireball nips, Jim Beam Apple, and the inevitable half-full spit bottles that really make the job "enjoyable."

It’s a mystery how someone can justify chucking a full Wal-Mart bag of fast food wrappers out the window

and still consider themselves a decent neighbor.

In a community where most of us strive to be good stewards of the woods and water,

these people are sitting at the very bottom of the respect pole.

It’s a total lack of character.

We’ll keep picking it up because we refuse to let our place look like a dump,

but it sure makes you wonder about the folks living further down the road.

If they treat their own community like a trash can,

you can only imagine what they’re doing to the resources we all share.

#pathetic

😒

A-Jay

I always take a garbage bag and gloves with me. I’ll try my best to leave the site cleaner than it was when I first got there. I’d hate for the trash to get into the water system or animals be affected by it. It’s a shame that people are ok with leaving such a mess where they’re supposed to go to find peace and relaxation.

I pick up what I can, living here in the NY metro area it can be daunting though.

I've fished area's in the NY bight where you would need a front end loader and a hundred 40 yd dumpsters.

Lakes by me aren't too bad, one thing I will not pick up is the lone sock or cut off sleeve

My local river is better than it was, but still are area's that are, well, disgusting.

Don't sweat it for a single second. 100% chance that the jackwagons calling you names aren't spending all of their free time doing charity work. I have had enough contact with you on here to know that you are extremely respectful and courteous both with other people and with nature. I have experienced so much hate on other forums and in social media groups that I severely restrict what and how much I share. I've learned that these days people deal with their own inadequacies by stealing peace and happiness from others. We have an amazing, inimitable community here thanks to @Glenn . This is where I find real people and real community and I have zero questions about your intentions or ethics.

To answer your question; I always pick up or pull out abandoned fishing line. I will sometimes pick up other's trash if the mood strikes me, but I don't pretend to be Mother Teresa because I picked up someone else's littered energy drink can.

2 hours ago, gim said:

I generally don't go around picking up litter or trash. I just don't. I was raised to clean up after myself and I have always done that when fishing, hunting, or doing anything else outdoors. I never leave anything behind.

I am on multiple outdoor forums and was recently tossed into the wood chipper, repeatedly called lazy and disrespecting the outdoors because I don't pick up other people's trash left behind. I thought it was a really low blow. After all, I'm not the source of the problem to begin with. So why am I being blamed for contributing to it?

How does everyone else here feel about picking up after others?

I do make an exception for wads of discarded fishing line. That stuff can wreak havoc on fish, wildlife, and props.

I too always pic up discarded fishing line because I have seen wading birds in a tangle of line and had to cut them out. You could just wad it up and stick it in your pocket, but some people are just so lazy and stupid!

I clean up as I go. Not always, but often enough. Mostly fishing line like you. More rarely bottles, old worm cups, and the like.

Do you have moral obligation to do this? I'd argue not really. I don't think poorly of anybody who doesn't. It is however a nice thing to do for the world.

I think people who trash up the outdoors are vile, though. I can't stand it and don't understand it. If you pack it in, pack it out. It's simple. I think it boils down to a lack of respect for themselves and others, and shows low moral development.

Greetings and Happy Friday All,

My $ 0.05 ( it used to be $0.02, adjusted for price escalation) tossed in for consideration, it is a personal choice. I suspect we have all contemplated a whole range of considerations when it comes to the rubbish issue.

I fully understand, these days you are not fully assured what you are dealing with is ‘safe’. Bravo to those assisting with the situation. Additional style points for those prepared with bags and gloves. Yes, good to be careful out there.

This should not disparage those that choose not to act. You have your own reasons and those opinions ares respected.

I am careful when handling material that should be in the rubbish bin. I am astonished when I’m at the urban parks and there is trash bin just a few meters away. Rather unfortunate it was too much effort to dispose of properly.

On a brighter note, over the years, I’ve salvaged all sorts of angling gear. Entire fishing rigs, lures, and etc. For the most part much of it simply needed some cleaning and new fishing line, good to go again. There are a number of youth and families that I’ve given the refurb gear to. A new lease on useful gear.

During this calendar year I’ve cleaned up six pairs of pliers and given most of them away to folks in need of one. Yes, I’ve used them too. A good wire brush scrub and some lubricant, many are useful again.

While I don’t make a huge dedicated effort, I make a thoughtful one. It is just my personal contribution to improving the places I go to. A minor distraction from my recreation is a reasonable investment.

Your mileage may vary. The choice is solely yours.

I am grateful to those can and do contribute to society’s well being.

Be well, Cheers!

Litter is a textbook example of the "tragedy of the commons". The people producing the litter don't know or don't care that they're doing it. After it's on the ground it is both everyone's and no one's problem.

I love picking up trash - especially dog poop. If I can get multiple piles in one bag, I'm genuinely happier for a while. That might me the dorkiest thing I've ever written, but I'm going to own it. I pickup trash because it's visually satisfying to 'fix' the scene. I also do it because I know I'm not perfect and it helps me absolve my mistakes. I know I miss the occasional dog poop or have a small piece of trash blow away. Picking up other trash is a way of atoning for those things.

@gim My two questions are: What about accidental litter? And what about your litter debt?

You probably litter occasionally and don't even realize it. Or, maybe you do realize it but you can't prevent it. That happens to all of us Do you feel like you should take responsibility for those? How?

Second, do you feel you owe a debt for the littering you have done? Kids are mess machines, they can't help it.

Finally, I apologize if my response comes off as overly paternalistic. I have 1st and 3rd grade boys so we spend A LOT of time talking about stuff like this.

I run hotels for a living and every fricking single morning I'm picking up trash in our parking lots as I make my way from my vehicle to my office.

Every single morning.

People walk right past trash cans and dumps stuff on our grounds. Or they just toss stuff out of their car and into our parking lot and grounds. I can't even fathom how someone's mind does that.

On Google maps just the other week I noticed a retention pond down the road from where I live and drove down there to check it out. The amount of trash surrounding that pond was staggering. I don't see how anyone can just dump trash anywhere and everywhere. How does someone's brain even work that way?

@gim The people that dissed you are probably the same people that won't pick up after themselves.

I used to hunt a lot and the first thing I looked for in an area is signs (trash) of people. Same thing with fishing, if I see too much people sign (trash) I move on.

I pick up what I can but if there is too much I'm turning around and leaving anyway. Sad.

We always pick up trash, within reason, when walking the dog or out hiking, I don’t like seeing it and if I don’t pick it up it’ll still be there next time.

Can’t say I’d ride someone for choosing to ignoring it, that’s their decision. I don’t push my standards on others.

10 hours ago, A-Jay said:

We deal with the same thing—our property on either side of the driveway seems to be the

designated drop zone for the "drive-by-litter" crowd.

I experience the same thing since we moved from metro Kansas City into the country. The area we chose is a more rugged and woodsy area and we chose it for that very reason. I am amazed at the amount of trash that is discarded, not just on my property, but on a significant number of the country roads around our area. We have a creek on our property that goes under the road and litterers seem to love to throw their trash in or near the creek as they pass over it. It is a constant battle to keep it picked up.

As for picking up trash when I go fishing, I pick up what I can get to and what I have time for. The environment is a big deal to me but there are limitations for what I can do sometimes. If you only have a specific amount of time to fish, you can't spend all that time picking up trash in really bad areas. The best thing to do is to take a dedicated trip to that location for trash pickup only. Also, emails, letters, and social media communications to news organizations in the area can sometimes instigate community efforts to clean up these locations.

I was taught "Leave it better than you found it". If I leave someone else's trash and so and so knows I was the last to fish that particular spot then in his eyes that is my trash. So, yes, I do pick up other peoples trash.

I always pick up after myself, but I don't often pick up after strangers. I have no idea what was in that garbage or what they did with it. We live in a crazy world, and if I don't have to touch something belonging to someone who already didn't care about anyone or anything around them, then I don't. And I'm certainly not lugging around tools to do this job for free like some sort of prisoner on work duty. Sad that it has to be that way, but with drugs, disease, pranks, and crime, it's not worth it to me.

If we could eliminate the knuckledraggers as easily as we eliminate the trash they leave...

10 hours ago, Lottabass said:

I used to hunt a lot and the first thing I looked for in an area is signs (trash) of people. Same thing with fishing, if I see too much people sign (trash) I move on.

I only hunt private land now so it behooves me to leave that land in the same condition as I found it. I even pick up my empty shotgun shell casings after I'm done. Just the week before last I shot a nice tom turkey and made point of picking up my shell casing.

I personally don't see a lot of trash where I fish. The DNR is pretty good about maintaining accesses and there are usually designated bins for it.

The crowd here that is generally a bigger problem when it comes to this sort of thing are ice anglers. They leave so much behind. Beer cans, empty propane tanks, human feces, cigarette butts, dead minnows/fish, etc.

On almost every trip I find a big wad of used fishing line on the ground or in a plant. I pick it up and put it in the bottom of my tackle bag. I've done this ever since I saw a white egret tangled up and hanging in a tree.

No judgement on my part if one chooses not to pick up other people's trash, however, I will demonize those who discard their garbage where it doesn't belong. It's difficult to identify a lower level of human. Nothing burns my arse more than seeing a beautiful natural area desecrated by garbage

Nature is my church, synagogue, mosque, or any other holy site. I treat it as the holiest of the holy. I am always prepared to pick up what I find left behind by others. I carry leather & exam gloves, several kinds of trash pick up sticks, a shovel, and contractor size garbage bags. I also have a long telescoping pole to snag lures from trees although I don't carry it all the time. Some of what I pick up is absolutely disgusting. Discarded food, used toilet paper, broken lawn chairs, a surprising amount of trashed fishing lures, hooks, and weights. Camping gear, clothing, broken glass, beer cans and cigarette butts.... I could go on and on. I police the area before I launch and after as well. While on the water I'll grab whatever litter I can find.

We shouldn't ask who should pick up the trash. A much better question to ask is who WILL pick up the trash. "Should" fixes nothing. "Will" starts the process of repair.

I was taught as a Scout to leave where ever I am better than when I arrived. I see no reason to stop now. My wife and I will police our local roads as well. There is no shortage of trash as well as ignorant beings to ruin it.

On 5/2/2026 at 7:57 AM, Lottabass said:

If we could eliminate the knuckledraggers as easily as we eliminate the trash they leave...

Don't eliminate them. Re-educate them.

If we don't change our ways as a collective, we'll end up with this....

https://youtu.be/S1J6TFHCevg?list=RDS1J6TFHCevg

I always pick up fishing line. I don’t want to see wildlife tangled up in fishing line. I’ll pick up trash if there is a trash can in the area.

On 5/1/2026 at 7:48 PM, gim said:

How does everyone else here feel about picking up after others?

If there's trash around a launch, I'll pick it up.