STORY AND PHOTOS BY KAREN BOSSICK

One Christmas tree strung with lights is now off the streets of Ketchum, as is a stuffed octopus, lone ski sorely needing wax and a half-smoked stogie.

It’s all thanks to the annual Clean Sweep, which brought out nearly a hundred adults and children in Ketchum and dozens more in Hailey and Bellevue on Saturday.

In Ketchum several members of the Sun Valley Fire Department took advantage of international Fire Day to scour streets in Sun Valley and Ketchum. The firefighters picked up 14 hefty bags of trash.

Trout Unlimited picked up eight bags in and around the area of the River Run Lodge, fishing out a couple sleeping bags, a backpack, a box of unused matches and even a shovel, said Ed Northen.

KBs Burritos rewarded participants for their efforts tossing out burritos in Ketchum and Hailey, while Mahoney’s and Atkinsons’ Market combined to provide lunch in Bellevue.

The fourth-grade class at Hemingway Elementary School got the Team Spirit Award in Ketchum, while other teams picked up prizes for Best Costume, Most Bags Picked Up and more from assorted businesses.

The Environmental Resource Center has been conducting Clean Sweep to get the valley ready for the summer for most of its 26 years, said the ERC’s executive director Hadley DeBree.