Adopt a Highway: Working off Thanksgiving along State Route 87

Like many of you, I went into last weekend in a turkey-, stuffing-, pie- and football-enduced stupor. Unlike many of you, I also was feeling behind on my obligations as an ADOT Adopt a Highway program volunteer.

So I decided to get away from ESPN and work off Thanksgiving along my adopted mile of State Route 87, just north of the Loop 202 Red Mountain Freeway. Here's what I learned picking up litter on a cool Saturday morning:

Exercise: My fitness app recorded more than 7,000 steps as I worked my way down one mile and back another. Not a bad workout when you add reaching with my grabber tool, scrambling a bit to cover all of the right of way and toting increasingly heavy bags of litter.

Time Outdoors: How wonderful it was to spend a few hours away from the temptation of 5,000 college football games and all of those leftovers in the fridge.

Accomplishment: My adopted mile is now free of four large bags full of litter along with some bundled lumber I found along the way. Plus I made up for way too many weeks of putting off a cleanup as summer seemingly lasted until Halloween.

Safety: Since I was trying this pickup solo, I consulted ADOT's safety requirements for Adopt a Highway volunteers, and they were a great help. In addition to wearing a safety vest and heavy gloves, I worked toward oncoming traffic and stayed a safe distance from traffic.

Appreciation: An officer with the Salt River Police Department spotted my vehicle parked safely in the right of way and kindly texted a welfare check (Note to self: Leave a note on the car next time). When I got back to him to apologize for the confusion and explain what I was doing, the officer responded, "No worries. Thank you for the work you do!" Connecting me with a person he saw cleaning litter along SR 87 nearby, the officer also complimented my safety vest.

Satisfaction: After several months away from my adopted mile, I was happy to only be able to fill four bags with litter. Clearly the cleanups my friends and I have done along the way are making a difference. A little more than a year ago, our first pickup filled more than 20 bags!

If getting in your steps while doing some good appeals to you, I hope you'll check out our Adopt a Highway volunteer website to learn more. It sure beats riding out an L-tryptophan coma on the sofa.

Back To ADOT Blog