Cans from multiple decades, collected during a recent cleanup, show the evolution of container design as well as the continued habit of tossing empties into natural habitats.

ESCANABA- Henry smiled at the golden sun setting on the far side of the river.

Three speckled trout lay in his fishing creel.

A shiny new 1956 Ford F-100 pick up truck was parked near the riverbank. Frank Sinatra was sing “You Make Me Feel So Young” on the radio.

Henry reached into his green metal-sided Coleman cooler for a Hamm’s beer. With an opener, he punched two triangle-shaped holes into the top of the beer can.

With the cool brew and the river view, it was a great day to be a Yooper.

Henry finished his drink, tossed his can into the woods and headed for home.

Fast forward to the summer of 1973.

Mike pushed in the eight-track cassette. Creedence Clearwater Revival sang out “Up Around the Bend.”

The dragonflies danced over the gently flowing river. Mike kicked off his Waffle Stomper hiking boots. It had been a nice walk to the waterfalls and back.

He dug into his Styrofoam cooler for a cold one. It was a good day to be a Yooper.

He popped the top on the Pabst and flung the little key shaped tab into the woods. Even though Woodsy Owl was already preaching “give a hoot, don’t pollute” on TV, the woods seemed so vast. The empty beer can soon followed, never to be seen again!

In a brink of an eye, it’s 2026 and the river still calls out to folks on lovely spring days.

Jalen pulls his kayak out of the water. What an awesome ride he had down the rain-swollen river. What a great day to be a Yooper! Just then his cell phone rings and he is brought back from mother nature time to texting time.

He sends his boss a quick message and reaches for his can of White Claw. Then Jalen loads his kayak back up onto the rack on his car.

He takes the empty aluminum can and… tosses it into a recycle bag in the backseat!

Is the cycle finally broken? Are container deposits helping our environment? In some ways, yes and in other ways no.

Many of us have seen the debris leftover by anglers or families in the park on the Fourth of July. All of us know at least one country road with old tires and household trash in a ditch. Many groups like Scouts and youth clubs have picked up litter along highways and are amazed at their bountiful harvest of garbage.

Recently, my sister cleaned up empty cans along the Escanaba River. The cans were from multiple decades. Cans our grandparents discarded, though rusty, still exist on the riverbank. There is some history there as beverage bottling modernized over the years.

Perhaps we are learning from history?

April 22 was “Earth Day.” One of the prettiest and most pristine places on Earth is right here in Upper Michigan. Let’s hand that down to our children!