The Art of Dumpster Diving and Garbage Gleaning

I hope I don't gross you out with this one. I'm sharing it because it might make someone else feel better about doing it if the choice comes up. Call it Dumpster Diving 101. Who knows what skills might come in handy in these perilous times.

I dumpster dive and garbage glean at this rather remote horse campground where I live. Campground garbage here consists mainly of a lot of canned baked beans, tortillas, various kinds of meat, and beverage containers. The wild critters around here appreciate handouts in this drought-ridden land, and I can use the money from recycling cans, bottles and plastic that would otherwise be wasted in overfilled dumps. With very little effort I make enough money at it in a month for a half a tank of gas or two meals at the casino. And I retrieve a lot of food for the crows, rabbits, coyotes, and other assorted animals.

I started this enterprise about six months after my friend Carmen, the Indian woman who had done all the maintenance in this park for years quit because she couldn't get occasional days off to go fishing. She is the hardest working woman I ever met. She did all the plumbing, carpentry and cleaning as well as doing all the work involved in reserving campsites for people and collecting the fees. This campsite was immaculate when she was doing the work. All the campsites were raked and even the weeds stayed out of sight on the periphery of the campsites.

After Carmen quit the tribal office could not find anyone to take her place. A few women tried it but usually left before the week was out. The horse corrals were not raked out and the garbage cans were not emptied for days at a time after campers left.

Meanwhile crowds of crows would get in the cans and systematically throw out all the paper plates and trash to get down to edible treats, and the almost constant wind would blow trash far and wide.

In the beginning, when I drove by these messes on my way to the village, I often stopped to pick up the trash strewn around by the crows, and I put it back in the garbage cans just because I hate to have ‘my' campground so messy. But usually by the time I returned to camp, the crows had pulled out half of the trash all over again. So, I decided to empty the garbage cans into the dumpster right after I had picked up each mess. I made an unspoken agreement with the tribal management that when I came across aluminum cans or beer bottles I would keep them in exchange for emptying the garbage cans. Since the cans are too heavy for me to lift when they are full, I have to transfer their contents into smaller  plastic bags. There are usually enough bags in the trash for the job, but I take a couple with me in case I might need them.

The way I go at this activity is to equip myself with my ‘grabber', heavy rubber work gloves, one or two large plastic bags for trash, and at least two large solid containers for cans and bottles. I put this equipment into the back of my pickup, and when most of the campers have left, I set out to check the garbage cans at each empty campsite.

The campground was filled this weekend because of the annual long distance horse races. I expected to find all the cans full, but most of them had very little refuse in them except for the main community site that had been set up by the long distance riding club. I estimate that about 200 people ate every meal together at this site, so that was the place to start.

When I arrived, a congregation of crows flew away to perch on wires and poles nearby to watch me. They had been trying to find thrown-out food without much success except at strewing plastic plates all over the place.

My method as I go through the contents of a garbage can is to put trash and whatever food the animals can't eat into plastic bags, and the cans and bottles into the solid containers. Then before I throw the bags into the dumpster, I use my ‘grabber' to reach any cans I can see in it and I try to get them out without my falling in.

Today just before sundown, I donned my gloves, placed the plastic bags and the solid containers in strategic places beside me, and after I had picked up all the wind-blown trash, I started on the garbage can. I picked all the plastic dinnerware out of the first layer in the plastic bag inside the can, before doing the same on a lower layer.

Many plates were half full of beans, coleslaw and meat. I'll bet I picked out at least 10 pounds of meat - untouched or half-eaten barbecued pork ribs, sliced roast beef, and hot dogs. There were gobs of baked beans on many plates, as well as cole slaw and about a half a peck of fresh cut-up lettuce. I knocked the beans off the plates and I threw all the food far and wide on the ground for any critters that might want it. I knew the crows would attack it as soon as I left, and I know there will be some happy coyotes dining there tonight. Rabbits will eat the lettuce later. Tomorrow the ground squirrels will clean up the remnants. I'm not sure if there will be any takers for the cole slaw, but I will inspect the site tomorrow and rake up whatever is left.

I also found a roll of wire I can use to repair my cat kennel. I had it on my list for my next trip to town and now I won't have to spend the money. My daughter once used my lightweight kennel to house some pit bull puppies and their strong jaws made short work of places in the chain link construction where they could escape. Now I want to make it escape-proof again for my eight remaining cats. Sometimes there are visiting dogs that might hurt of even kill my cats. They live so congenially with my two dogs that they don't realize other dogs might be dangerous. And sometimes coyotes come too close for their safety. They need a secure kennel where they can be outside and still be safe. All but two of them are near the ten-year mark or older.

I have lost six beloved cats during this last year. But that is another story.