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Friends of Accotink Creek
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Our October 3, 2026 stream cleanups:
Sunny skies prevailed the entire day, with not a single cloud to be seen in the sky. Temperatures began in the mid-50's and rose to the upper 70's. As a weather front approached over the previous few days, forecasts vacillated by the hour from no rain to all day rain, to morning rain, to afternoon rain. As it turned out, we had steady drizzle in the morning, followed by threatening skies, but no rain in the afternoon. Steady rain the previous night left Accotink Creek running higher than normal. The high water limited access to many areas and concealed many trash items. Pickett Road was our first site of the day. We had a total of 8 volunteers here, who collected 6 bags of trash. We encountered one with so many colorful beverage cans poking out of the grass, the search for trash resembled an Easter egg hunt. Our most unusual finds here were a single flip-flop and a valid debit card that we turned in at the police station. This site is the same location proposed for the Pickett Road Connector Trail, an entirely redundant conversion of forest and floodplain to asphalt. At Barkley Drive, our second site of the day, our 12 volunteers removed 16 bags of trash. Our most unusual find here was a small engine fuel tank. We encountered depressing expanses of invasive species dominating the banks of the creek, but also two possible bright points - The Japanese knotweed along the road appeared to have been sprayed, showing no sign of life and some unknown insect had chewed large hole in the leaves of the endless vines of Japanese hops. Our last site of the day was Woodburn Road. It was disappointing that none of the 8 volunteers who had registered beforehand showed up. However, with walk-ins, we had a group of 8 volunteers who removed 10 bags of trash and 2 tires. We had no noteworthy unusual finds here, just the usual cans, bottles, and bags.
"If half of American lawns were replaced with native plants we would create the equivalent of a 20 million acre national park - nine times bigger than Yellowstone, or 100 times bigger than Shenandoah National Park." - Dr. Doug Tallamy |
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Our September 27, 2026, cleanups:
The day began with overcast punctuated by occasional glimpses of the sun. Soon enough, passing sprinkles appeared. The sprinkles became more frequent during the day before turning into steady light showers during the last hour of the day. Still, conditions were not quite wet enough to dampen the enthusiasm of our volunteers. All this moisture was the outermost effect of the nor'easter storm that was battering the coast at the time. At our first site, Fairfax Boulevard, we had a crew of 8 volunteers. The volunteers collected 11 bags of trash. Our most unique finds here were a rusty shopping cart and a tricycle. Overlapping with this cleanup site is a recent stream redesign project intended for long term erosion control. While the actual in-stream work seems to have been well done, the adjoining floodplain is in a sad state. After clearing away of the existing forest during the project, the floodplain has been replanted, but with disappointing results. Few of the trees and native vegetation installed by the project seem to be doing well, while invasive species like small carpet grass are covering large areas. Our second site of the day was University Drive. Our 8 volunteers here cleaned up 10 bags of trash. Our unusual finds here were not so unusual, a shirt and 1/4 of a hubcap. An interesting discovery here was the "food forest", a grove of three domestic persimmon trees planted on public property and laden with sweet fruit. As we were preparing to leave, some of our high school volunteers quizzed each other on their geography knowledge. How many of us can list all countries with names ending in "-stan"? Blenheim Blvd was our last site of the day. Our 9 volunteers here removed 8 bags of trash. Our most unusual finds here were a shopping cart and an exceptional amount of fishing line, discarded after becoming snagged. We had VIP visitors in the persons of candidate for Fairfax City Mayor Tom Peterson and City Council candidate Stacy Hall. If you are a Fairfax City voter, learn more about this year's elections. How many ways can the message of personal responsibility be expressed? No littering! No Dumping! Pitch in! Put trash in its place! We all benefit by being reminded! 
GET YOUR BRAIN WET! Think about your creek. |
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 Volunteers moved the heavy axle halves this far before running out of steam |
Our September 19, 2026, stream cleanups:
Today began as a fine day along Accotink Creek, with temperatures starting near 70 and rising to just about 80. Skies began clear, but then turned overcast ftert midday. At our first site of the day, Braddock Road, we had just 3 volunteers, who collected 4 bags of trash. Our most unusual find here was nothing more remarkable than a broom handle. At Franconia-Springfield Parkway, we again had 3 volunteers, the same three from this morning. Just like last year, we were too late in the season to find any fruit still on the pawpaw trees along the trail. We collected an unusual number of dog waste bags, apparently thrown into the creek from the pedestrian by one or more thoughtless pet owners. Our volunteers collected 4 bags of trash. Our most unusual find here was half a broken skateboard. At our last site of the day, Telegraph Road, we were joined by two groups from George Mason University, Phi Iota Alpha and Lambda Pi Chi. Thank you, Phi Iota Alpha and Lambda Pi Chi! Our 14 volunteers devoted most of their attention to the arduous task of extracting ancient-looking car axle with attached wheels. This axle has defied us for over a decade, stuck deep in immovable mud until now. Finding it's position had shifted, the volunteers managed to wrest it free of the mud and rocks. However, after heaving and dragging it 80 yards toward the road, there was not enough energy left in the group to haul the axle out to the street. No matter, we will move it further along when we return in April. In addition to the axle, our volunteers collected 4 bags of trash.
Despite all the wonderful volunteers who have turned out to help, we are still outnumbered by the litterbugs. Your club, school, business, or other group is welcome to join Friends of Accotink Creek in next year's Potomac Watershed Cleanup in April & May, and the International Coastal Cleanup in September & October! Volunteer site leaders and coordinators are needed! Follow the Friends of Accotink Creek motto and "Find just one other person who cares". |
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The International Coastal Cleanup is the world's largest volunteer data collection effort devoted to the marine environment. The Ocean Conservancy compiles the data received from sites around the world, and prepares a summary report to be used by citizens and policy makers in evaluating our progress in dealing with this serious form of pollution.
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GET YOUR BRAIN WET! Join Friends of Accotink Creek in next year's International Coastal Cleanup in September and the Potomac Watershed Cleanup in April! Read about last year's International Coastal Cleanup on Accotink Creek.
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