Cleaning up the Waitemata

I spotted the Phil Warren 2 on the ramp at Westhaven. It was a stunning morning and I was running early, so I figured I'd quickly sketch it. I've read about the work they do cleaning up the harbour, it's tributaries and the islands of the Hauraki Gulf so I reckoned it worthy of a sketch.

My sketching caught the eye of skipper Ben Harris who wandered over for a chat. He was getting it ready for a mission up the Whau River – the estuary that runs up past Lincoln Road to Glendene and Kelston in West Auckland where he would be meeting a group of locals up there for the morning's clean-up.

According to their website, the trust has collected 3,672,338 litres of litter since they launched in 2002. So much for our 100% Pure image eh. Ben told me anyone can help out, individuals, groups and corporate groups, so head over to their website for details on how you can help out. I'll be lending a hand at some stage – and taking the sketchbook of course – looking forward to drawing Auckland's trash.