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Five ordinary guys met along the banks of the Cedar River south of Austin on Thursday afternoon, but not for fishing, kayaking or a lazy stroll through the woods.

In fact, their efforts were anything but an easy walk as they trudged through the river for nearly a mile, continuing river-cleaning efforts started one year ago. The sun beamed on the banks, through the thick brush and offered a perfect day for any river activity. This group, however, chose to tow a John boat and canoe downstream — often across shallow rocks — as they dredged tires from mud, plucked beer bottles from branches and grabbed whatever they could that didn’t belong.

They heard about the Cedar River Watershed District’s efforts to employ a Department of Natural Resources Adopt-a-River plan on the river last year. As hunters, fishermen and Izaak Walton League members, they decided to join. After what they saw last year, they knew their efforts would be ongoing.

“We counted 110 tires,” said Mike Hull, the organizer of the group that jokingly calls itself The Gun Club.

“It’s a group that just meets and talks about all kinds of stuff,” Hull said about himself, Bob Wangsness, Jeff Ollman, Scott Reese and Nick Pedersen.

Though the Adopt-a-River program offers tips and supplies and requires a two-year commitment for each group’s river cleanup, this group may not stop after that. The Cedar is calling for the extra work, and people are listening.

“I think more and more people are realizing what a resource the river is,” said Bob Wangsness.

Wangsness is appalled and confused about people’s decisions to litter.

“It’s not just the rivers like this,” he said about littered areas. “It amazes me what people will throw out.”

“The Gun Club” isn’t the only group scouring the Cedar River. Tim Ruzek and Justin Hanson of the CRWD organized the local program and landed nine groups last year. Many of them have honored their commitment this year. Another group south of Austin pulled roughly 80 tires from the water and stacked them along the roadway for a disposal service.

“The tires,” was all one woman could say, not needing to say much else.

Hanson and Ruzek participated in the CRWD’s own cleanup near Marcusen Park both years, and they also see awareness starting to increase.

They are confident that someday — on perfect, warm, blue-sky days like Thursday — people will be able to thoroughly enjoy the Cedar, instead of trudging through it, looking for more tires.