A 2nd mostly sunny day in a row on Monday. Gusty winds made it a nasty day to do any boating, and even standing on the dock was a challenge. The forecast shows that Monday was our warmest day of the entire week with a cold front forecast to pass by Tuesday and morning temperatures returning to be below the freezing mark by Wednesday. Rain is possible pretty much every day for the next 7 days. We could use an all-day rain to replenish ground water that is still below normal after the drought last year. The lake water temperature finally took a bit of a bump in the upward direction on Monday.
The lake level continues to fall quickly. So quickly it is concerning. It is now lower than it was a year ago and continues to go down right around one inch every 24 hours.
I had Saunders Tree Service come in Monday to remove some dead white birch trees. I used them numerous times at the marina, mostly around the parking lot. They are expensive, but you get what you pay for. Professional, safe service. They will do water access projects. Highly recommended.
There was another hopefully positive development on the Dixon Creek access issue on May 1st. 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 by mid-May.
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 am now into my 3rd season of using the service 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.
