Another very chilly day on Friday. A beautiful sunrise in the morning was quickly erased with a thick layer of clouds. It remained overcast all day. A brief late afternoon storm brought some rain, wind, and even a few snowflakes. Saturday morning is well below freezing with frost glistening on the lawn and dock. They say it will cloud over once again with about a 50/50 chance of rain or flurries this afternoon. It looks like this should be the last of this string of way below normal temperature days with Sunday morning forecast to once again be below freezing, but Sunday afternoon finally getting into the 50F range.
Just after I updated the news Saturday morning, a snow squall has passed by around 7:20AM and turned the world all white. With how cold it was overnight the snow is sticking.
The lake level is falling quickly. So quickly it is a bit concerning. It is now lower than it was a year ago today. From what I have observed, we are still in drought conditions. It is normal for there to be two, small streams flowing down the hillside here for a few weeks after the snow melts. They are spring fed from somewhere up the hill. Neither of those streams flowed this year meaning the ground water remains below normal levels.
There was another hopefully positive development on the Dixon Creek access issue Friday morning. First, we learned that it is not a creek or river. The waterway does not fall enough meters per kilometer to be considered a creek or river. It is officially a "waterway." 2nd is that taking identifiable photos of anyone on a waterway without their permission is illegal. Not going to say much more than that for now, but there are both short term, and long-term solutions being worked on quietly to insure continued motorboat access to Dixon Lake for years to come. Should have further information in about a week.
I tied up a piece of runaway dock to the shoreline at 222 North Shore. If you are missing a nice, modern (built on floats) piece of dock that is roughly 6 feet by 10 feet, that is where it is.
Transport Canada is digging into our pocketbooks this year. Most of us now have to renew the registration of our boats every 5 years. Pretty much applies to every boat that has an engine of 10hp or more regardless of age. More information here:
https://tc.canada.ca/en/marine-transportation/vessel-licensing-registration/licensing-pleasure-craft/apply-manage-pleasure-craft-licence-pcl/apply-manage-pleasure-craft-licence-pcl
There is a $250 fine if you get pulled over for a safety inspection this season and your registration is not up to date.
The Rogers / FOCA special pricing plan for internet service remains $60 per month. (unless you have a Rogers phone in which case it remains $50 per month) Even at the $60 price it is the best internet service for many of us on the lake. It appears they throttle the 5G connection to 40MBps down, and 10MBps up. (tested to that speed again recently) That is plenty of bandwidth for any single-family use. I have used the service for two full seasons and grade it an A-. If the service keeps working through power outages in the future I will up their grade to A+.
Summer burning rules came into effect on April 1. Fires are permitted 7PM to 7AM only through October 31st. Check the municipal website for information regarding total fire bans during the summer should that become necessary. There is also information there on how to apply for a permit for a legal daytime fire through the summer months. (conditions allowing)
The dump is now on summer hours through August 31. It is open Wednesday, Saturday, Sunday and holiday Mondays from 11AM to 6:00PM.
Dirt roads in the municipality are now on half-load restrictions tentatively through May 15. That date may change depending on the spring thaw. Do not order any heavy deliveries until after that date.
The 2026 fishing regulations are on-line.
https://lwra.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/2026-fishing-regulations-summary-en-2025-12-08.pdf
The fishing seasons and regulations for this area (zone 15) remain the same as 2025. They are on pages 104-114 of the regulations book. Bass starts June 27 and ends November 30. Trout started January 1 and ends September 30 with the slot size of 16 to 21 inches to be returned to the lake. It is a one-line lake for ice fishing.
