Text and pics contributed by Christina.
We were meant to meet Peter at 2pm at Stoke Bridge and walk along the River Walk path, picking up litter on our way. A nice idea, I thought, to spend a couple of hours doing my bit to make this very urban and busy part of Suffolk a better place while in good company. I had to rush due to a vaccination appointment which caused me to race along a busy waterfront, filled with lunchers and people soaking up the glorious sunshine.
Off we went, armed with bin bags, gloves and picking tools which the Council kindly provided for us. A bench surrounded by shrubs was just across the road and proved fertile ground for our efforts to clean up Ipswich: broken glass, cans, plastic bottles and bottle tops everywhere. We set to the task, slowly working our way along the river path, stopping at the skateboard park to collect more litter – how exciting, the place was full of food containers, bottles and more plastic in all shapes and forms.
Gulls were screeching, fighting over something on the water surface. A group of Canada geese and a swan family swam past us, probably wondering what we were up to. Our litter pick walk ended near the Bobby Robson Bridge, by which time we had five bags of rubbish which Peter kindly agreed to take home in his car. In good old IOG tradition we ended our litter pick with a social drink at the Cult Café, still enjoying the afternoon sun and feeling pleased about what we achieved. A big thank you to Peter Thorpe for keeping our group of six busy and entertained for the best part of this lovely Saturday afternoon. 😎
