Adventures for Wilderness, Friends Fish-A-Thon – Mar. 7-8, 2020
March 8, 2020
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Photos: Nissa Petterson
Led by Nissa Petterson
Our adventure started on Friday with a race against time; we boogied to set up our staging area and drill our holes in the ice before the weather socked in and the blowing snow kept us huddled by our fire. By Friday evening, we had 4cm of snow, with more to come. We bunkered down in our tent, hoping to catch some late roving and hungry walleyes. Saturday morning we woke up to -20C, and welcomed some more friends that popped in for a day visit. We roamed around the lake, drilling holes and using a fishcam hoping to spot some schools of perch, or even just a single monster pike. We also took time to help our friends at Alberta Lake Management Society with one of their citizen science programs, the Winter Lakekeepers Program. We recorded the total dissolved oxygen at various depths of the lake, and took a sample of the water to test Total Phosphorous-all of which help indicate the overall health of the lake. As the day progressed, more snow arrived and some of our friends who couldn’t overnight on the lake had to leave. As the snow continued to fall, we resumed our posts hoping to pair our dinner with a side of fish, and eventually, our efforts paid off! We caught a 26 inch pike on a tip up located outside of the tent. It ended up being the only fish we caught over the weekend, but at least we can say we weren’t completely shut out! The catch rejuvenated our spirits, and we celebrated over a tasty meal. Sunday morning came, and it was time to pack up and head home, however it seemed that Mother Nature didn’t to want us to leave. By Sunday morning, a total of 9 cm of snow had accumulated bogging down our vehicles, in addition to a couple of frozen vehicle batteries. With some shoveling, pushing, and a little bit of kitty litter, we eventually made it out safely – with stories to tell!
