Cook County ATV Club and Tread Lightly Off-Road host a successful weekend cleanup

Over the August 13 and 14 weekend, the Cook County ATV Club and Tread Lightly Off-Road team took to the backroads and trails to conduct a summer cleanup.

The all-volunteer group encountered a variety of interesting items sprinkled throughout the Superior National Forest.

“Quite a variety. From burnt-up lazy boy chairs to junk cars, propane tanks, and lawn mowers. A little bit of everything,” said Scott Benolkan, a member of Tread Lightly Off-Road.

The 10-person volunteer group cleaned up various gravel pits and dispersed campsites over the weekend, stretching from the Arrowhead Trail to the Sawbill Trail.

Benolkan said he doesn’t particularly like cleaning up people’s garbage or trash, but he enjoys doing these events to make the woods a better and cleaner place to recreate.

He said he wants to “Show people that although we’re a motorized activity group, we care about our environment and how it looks.”

While the Tread Lightly Off-Road group has conducted cleanups throughout the past four years in Cook County, it was the first time they had partnered with the Cook County ATV Club.

In addition, multiple local businesses supported and participated in the cleanup event. “I’d like to give a huge thank you to Cook County Towing, Kevin DeRosier,” said Benolkan.

DeRosier donated his time and towing truck to help the group retrieve a demolished car out of a gravel pit.

The cleanup event was also sponsored by the National Organization of Tread Lightly. “They rented two big garbage dumpsters for us,” Benolkan said.

Photos from the event below:

WTIP’s Kalli Hawkins spoke with Scott Benolkan, a member of Tread Lightly Off-Road, about the weekend cleanup event. Audio from the interview is below.

Kalli Hawkins August 17, 2022