Minutes of April 17, 2005

Minutes of the 7th Meeting of

Present: Lorne Bowerman, Dave MacCrimmon, Howard Stanley, Rhodena Bell, Bill Brooks

Regrets: Parsons Lane/Way Representative

Lorne opened the meeting at 2:10 PM. Rhodena moved seconded by Howard that the agenda be accepted. Carried. Dave moved seconded by Bill that the minutes of the last meeting be accepted. Carried. A good general discussion on the state of the Lake after the winter. On April 16/17, the ice went overnight from the eastern end. There is still very black looking ice on a diagonal from the islands to the creek at Sobczaks. Lorne reported that he had seen a loon while paddleboating to the meeting (and joined by a second one after the meeting while going back) It has been a good winter with little damage except from the ever determined beavers. Lorne and Dave reported a lake level of 19 on April 17. Dave also reported that the level reached 24″ for two days the previous week.

Lake Level

Dave led a washup discussion on the cleaning of the culverts last fall. It was very successful. The Lake did not freeze until quite late so a number of owners kept the culverts clear. The meeting considered that it was worthwhile repeating the process in 2005.
This spring the beavers have been very active and it requires daily attention. There have been a number of owners who have kept the culverts open. Hearty thanks were extended by the meeting.
Dave has had discussion with the MNR concerning the possibility of some sort of flow restriction (other than the natural one done by the beavers). A representative from the MNR said it was a very complex subject. Any proposed flow restriction would have to come from the owner, which in the case of the culverts is the Township of Lanark Highlands. Dave will discuss with the Mississippi Valley and Lanark Highlands staff. Dave is prepared to do the paper work. The meeting unanimously agreed to support proceeding with the proposal.

Marker Buoys

Lorne will paint and place two markers buoys near the large rock on the shoal west of Mary’s Island, which is considered the worst hazard on the Lake. Other owners normally place markers on rocks close to their land. The meeting agreed that the long weekend in May is usually the time to have the buoys out. There are many treacherous rocks in the Lake and
the meeting agreed that boaters have to use due diligence to avoid the rocks.

Boat Operator’s License

Lorne told of his experience in obtaining a boat operator’s license. He was unaware that it was a requirement regardless of age or size of the motor. The other members knew of the regulations. If it is motorized and under 4 metres, a license is needed now.

April Newsletter

Lorne outlined what he had planned for the April newsletter. He asked for suggestions on other items to include. Bill suggested a short paragraph on the good practice of throwing back larger Pickerel (Walleye Pike) to keep the breeding stock healthy. Bill suggested keeping fish only from the minimum of 14″ to a maximum of 20″.
Lorne noted that he had been given a web domain (www.bowerman.ca) for Christmas and that it was his intention to move the Patterson Lake information to that site because it had 10 Gigabytes of storage rather than the 5 megabytes on his other sites. This information will be included in the Newsletter.

Parsons Way/Lane Representative

The meeting noted with regret the lack of a representative for this area. It is still the hope to have someone represent this area in the discussions about the Lake.

Other Business

Rhodena was encouraged by the meeting to start writing a history of the Lake. Lorne offered to publish it to the Patterson Lake website. A number of interesting stories were told by Rhodena and Bill about life on the Lake in earlier times. Dave’s uncle, John Macrimmon, was apparently a character and well remembered by Rhodena. We all look forward to seeing
the stories published for everyone to enjoy.
Dave asked Lorne to confirm with Terry and MVA his duties as Lake Steward (see the minutes of the last meeting for details).
Dave asked Lorne to include an updated call list for all the representatives.

Next Meetings

The next meetings were set for June 5 at Bill’s (483 Porcupine Way), August 14 at Howard’s (632 Fairs Lane) and October 16 at Lorne’s (151 Lakeside Rd).

Adjournment

In the listing below, “(H)” means “home” and “(L)” means “Lake”.

Rhodena Bell, Box 32, MacDonalds Corners, ON K0G 1M0 (H)267-5291 (L)278-2562 purdonbell@perth.igs.net

Bill Brooks, 484 Porcupine Way, Box 61, McDonalds Corner, ON K0G 3G0 278-2705

Lorne Bowerman, (L) 151 Lakeside Road, (H) 6 Lipstan Ave, Nepean, ON K2E 5Z3 (H)225-7904 (L)278-2813 lorne@bowerman.ca

Dave MacCrimmon, 399 Hardwood Ridge Road, RR3, Lanark, ON K0G 1K0 278-0184 dlmaccrimmon@sympatico.ca

Parsons Way/Lane – no representative.

Howard Stanley, (L)632 Fair’s Lane (H) 313 Hinchey Ave, Ottawa, ON K1Y 1M1 (H)722-6846 howard.stanley@statcan.ca