Cub Scouts Clean Up Slade Dale Natural Sanctuary in Point Boro

Members of Cub Scout Pack 6, based in Point Pleasant Beach, will return to Slade Dale Natural Sanctuary off Dorsett Dock Road in Point Boro on Saturday to conduct their semi-annual clean-up of the walking trails and surrounding wetlands.

Joining them will be members from the local 4-H Club in Point Pleasant. 

Pack 6 first adopted the sanctuary in 2001 as a Pack service project. Since then, the boys and their leaders have returned numerous times to insure that the park remains in pristine condition.

“Local youths tend to use the confines of Slade Dale as a party spot,” stated Kevin Tumpey, Cubmaster of Pack 6.  “We usually find beer cans, broken bottles, furniture, empty water bottles and cigar and cigarette butts littering the trails and back deep in the reed grass.

"We also repair sections of the trails, which have been dug up to make jumps and moguls for dirt bikes, as these are major hazards to anyone walking in the park in the evening,” said Tumpey, who lives with his family in Brick.

The scouts return each April and August to insure the sanctuary is clean during its period of heaviest use, Tumpey said.

Their conservation efforts are coordinated with the Point Pleasant Environmental Commission and Public Works Department and are aimed to protect wildlife, the environment and the community. 

Many people are not aware that Slade Dale Natural Sanctuary is host to an active osprey tower and is a breeding ground for fish, birds and other wildlife, Tumpey said.

More importantly, they don’t seem to realize that their litter can actually harm these animals and the surrounding habitat. 

“As good stewards of our environment, we must learn to act responsibly,”  Tumpey said. 

“The Boy Scouts have an excellent saying when it comes to interacting with nature, one by which we should all abide: 'Take only pictures, leave only footprints,' " Tumpey said. "Until that time, the members of Cub Pack 6 will continue to return to Slade Dale Natural Sanctuary to clean up after others less considerate of our environment."

Cub Scout Pack 6 is sponsored by the Point Pleasant Presbyterian Church on Bay and Forman avenues in Point Pleasant Beach.

Pack 6 is in its 62nd year of service to local boys and the community.  Pack meetings are typically held on the third Friday of each month from September through June at the Christian Education building on Bay Avenue beginning at 7 p.m.

Cub Scouting is designed for boys from first to fifth grade.

For more information on Pack 6, please contact Tumpey at (732) 278-6425.