A member of a cleanup crew uses a gas-powered chop saw on an RV frame at an abandoned homeless camp in the Chilliwack River Valley this past week. (Image Credit: Ross Aikenhead)

By Mike Vanden Bosch

Abandoned homeless camps

Cleanup efforts ramp up as thousands of pounds of junk removed from Chilliwack River Valley

Feb 1, 2026 | 8:17 AM

CHILLIWACK – When it comes to cleaning up homeless camps in the Chilliwack River Valley, there’s always work to be done it seems.

Chilliwack cleanup volunteer Ross Aikenhead teamed up with fellow cleanup crew members and a contractor from F.H. Forestry Ltd. this past week to tackle three camps up Chilliwack Lake Road, hauling away literally thousands of pounds worth of debris and scrap metal.

“Update from today, we’ve got three camps cleaned up and the access deactivated,” Aikenhead said Friday evening (Jan. 30). They still will need a little bit of TLC to get the small bits and pieces that the machinery can’t get and I’ll arrange that in the near future.”

Aikenhead says five RVs have been removed from the scene this past week, while three 40-yard roll-off bins full of garbage have been hauled away.

Cleanup efforts in the Chilliwack River Valley. (Image Credit: Ross Aikenhead.)

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“Also in the last 2 days, I’ve hauled five loads of metal to the scrap yard totalling 2,170kg, and the $411.75 from the scrap metal will be donated to FCM Community Cat Trappers to help with unhoused and feral cats,” Aikenhead said. “There has been a slight complication with the last two RVs and I’ll update everybody when that is resolved. Next week there won’t be anything happening at this time. Huge thanks to F.H. Forestry for arranging this.”

The red pin indicates where one of the three abandoned homeless camps was located (east of Thurston Meadows Campground) in the Chilliwack River Valley. (Image Credit: Google Maps.)