Trash I Found in Lake Livingston

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August 24, 2025 – Trash Haul

A ballflower
33 lighters; ten more than Project Pat had on his dresser. Yes sir. I don’t think we broke a record this week.
A view of a grassy area near a lake, littered with plastic bottles and other debris, alongside a wooden pier and a blue sky with clouds.
Here is an overview of the various trash piles we separated. This took a little over an hour to collect. On a side note, it is a bit hot for the purple martins right now. Fixing the missing gourd is on my to-do list–I can’t wait for their return in the Fall. They are incredibly social and chatty birds that are both amplified and dramatic. Watching them is like watching a telenovela
I did not bother counting these bottles. I have learned a lot about people and the lake by just looking at the trash. I suppose I’m still an archaeologist at heart.

First, it seems chicken livers are a popular fishing bait choice on Lake Livingston. It is a good bait for catfish, and one of the cheapest grocery store baits available. It is amazing that one container of chicken livers is about half the cost of a container of night crawlers.

Second, I was trying to understand the allure and use of piss jugs on the lake. I doubted it was boaters–who likely jump in the water and “check the prop”. Long-haul truckers apparently use them. I suspect they are thrown out. The watershed runoff carries them into the Lake.

Each trash haul I make a pile of toiletries and medications. Eye drops, pill containers, deodorant, etc.
Two more syringes. And, of course, the bane of my existence–single use floss picks.
This is reptile ramp bowl that goes in an aquarium for reptiles.
Starting fluid, lighter fluid, JB Weld, super glue, and patch and seal. A collection of various chemicals making it into the Lake.
I’m not sure what I was trying to say with this collection. The two containers on the left are absurd. One is a yogurt drink, and the other is a plastic Skittles container. The vegetable and measuring spoons were firsts. The two squares are car air-fresheners.
Lids, dip containers, and random plastic.
In a rare set of circumstances, we found a lid that fits the discarded water jug. Do they still make these? I had one as a kid going to soccer practice in the 90s.
The shoe collection grows. The heel was the highlight this time.
Arts and crafts time. We do find a surprising number of pens and markers.
A collection of various discarded objects on grass, including a yellow object, a white cylindrical item with dirt, a yellow and brown stick-like object, and a small brown ceramic piece.
Random things. I have noticed several reflectors washing up on shore.

We have all the sports you could ever want at the Lake.

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