MOUNT LAGUNA, Calif. -- A pile of trash was found just off Sunrise Highway at the Mount Laguna Recreation Area, an eyesore left behind after a busy weekend.
RELATED: Reminder...BIG snow = BIG crowds
L.C. Dawson brought his daughter back for a second day in a row to avoid the crowds they encountered on Sunday. So many people visited Mount Laguna that the California Highway Patrol had to turn them away.
"It took us about an hour, 45-50 minutes to finally get up here. I know people farther back, it took about three hours,” said Dawson.
In the pile of trash 10News found wrappers and bags from fast food and other snacks, and post office boxes used as sleds. And then there were a few soda bottles and cans strewn across the snow.
As Kristine Griffiths watched her kids sledding the mountain, she noticed one thing.
"I'm looking around and thinking, 'people need to pick up all their broken sleds,'” said Kristine Griffiths.
So after some fun in the snow, Griffiths and the other adults turned their experience into a teaching moment.
"Hey you guys, don't load it up on me. We'll have to carry it back to the car. We'll pick up some stuff along the way,” said Griffiths.
"People are just coming down and when they hit the bumps, they can crack. So we're picking it up so there's no trash left behind,” said Griffin Sipe, who came along with the Griffiths.
During this time last year in Julian, locals complained that visitors left behind trash there too and even played in the snow over the town's cemetery.
There are people, like the Oden family from Chula Vista, who know what they pack in, they must pack out. They had a picnic in Mt. Laguna.
"We always pick up our stuff, we're not messy people. We always pick up our trash,” said Michelle Oden.
It’s something locals hope more people will do as more snow storms hit this winter.
All in all, the trash problem wasn’t as bad as in year’s past. Perhaps more people are getting the message to pick up after themselves.
Chains are no longer required to drive up to the mountains.
