May Update: Wolf Lake, Fire!, Logging

Kukagami Environment Watch                         Spring Update

www.kewatch.com

 

Wolf Lake, the Largest Area of Old Growth Red Pine in the World!

    Efforts to bring the Wolf Lake area into the Chiniguchi Waterway Park continue. On May 31st, one of the leases at Wolf Lake will expire...IF the Minster of Northern Development and Mines allows it to go. Rick Bartolucci, our Sudbury MPP is the Minister! Please call his office and tell him you want this beautiful area to be protected. 705-675-1914 Stop the lease renewal!

    See www.savewolflake.org, click on "Report..." for more information.

 

Fire on Kukagami Lake!

    Last weekend, 2 cars and a truck burned in a parking lot. It is suspected the hot pipes under one car ignited the tinder dry pine needles, which spread to the tires and got worse from there. Tires exploded, the next car caught, gas tanks exploded, the wind blew the fire across more dry needles, then a truck 60 feet away joined the inferno. Our local volunteers responded very quickly and were able to bring the fire under control.

    It is exceedingly dry in the forest! Look around your camp for possible fire hazards, rake your driveway, inspect your sauna, be vigilant!

    Saunas are the most likely buildings to burn. After decades of use, the wood inside the sauna will get very, very dry. Sometimes the wood will char. Check your sauna walls by scratching with your fingernail. If the fibres easily scratch off, it's time to replace that wood! It can spontaneously combust at temperatures that are normal in a sauna.

 

Summer Logging Plans

    Road and bridge construction has already begun approximately 3km East of Kukagami Rd and South of the rail-bed. Logging will continue through the summer in this location. If you have any questions, contact Pat Bazinet at Vermilion Forest Management Company Ltd. cell: 705-929-1677

If you have news or photos to share with neighbours at Kukagami Lake, send them to KEWatch@gmail.com.

Spring Newsletter

Kukagami Environment Watch                                                       Area News

http://www.kewatch.blogspot.com/                                            Spring 2012

 

In the spring,

at the end of the day,

you should smell like dirt.    Margaret Atwood

 

(here's hoping you can get out to the garden soon!)

 

 

The Ice is Gone!

 

Early afternoon, Monday April 9^th, the last floes of ice were blowing down the lake with the strong northwest winds.  This is one of the earliest dates for an ice free lake, second only to 2010, when the ice blew away on April 3^rd.  The average ice-out date for the past 30 years occurred in the last ten days of April.  

 

The long warm weeks of mid-March almost resulted in the earliest ever ice-off Kukagami Lake.  But alas, seasonal temperatures returned, and the ice got thicker for a week or two. Even though all the ice was gone from Klondike Bay by April 5^th, it was just possible to walk on the ice of the big lake on the morning of Friday April 6^th.  This was only possible because the overnight temperature dipped well below freezing each of the preceding 5 nights.  See lots of photos on the KEW website.

 

 

Oops!

Someone went skidooing a little late this year, don't ya think?  If it was you let us know and we'll help get a crew to pull the skidoo out of the water!

 

 

 

Spring Road Clean-up

Early spring means we can get an early start to the annual spring Road Clean up! Between now and May 5^th, you can sign up to clear the litter from a section of Kukagami and Fox Roads. To register for your section of the road, drop a line here at kewatch@gmail.com.

Bring a friend – it's a fine way to spend a spring day while at camp.

**Please note! The City wants us to sort the roadside trash into separate bags of recyclables and garbage. We have clear bags for the recyclables, and black bags for the garbage. Please let us know if you need these supplies!**

You also need to sign a waiver.  Please wear a bright orange vest while working…and keep yourself safe!

 

Wolf Lake!

            Efforts are underway to bring stronger protection to Wolf Lake and the Chiniguchi River system.  A postcard campaign to encourage the Minister of Northern Development and Mines, our own Rick Bartolucci, to stop auto-renewing the mining claims and leases in the area.  Check out www.savewolflake.org and request a postcard from KEW at KEWatch@gmail.com

 

Water Watcher

            Now that the ice is off the lake, it's time to think about how we can keep the water clean – clean enough to drink while having a swim this summer!

            #1 Check your septic system…is it working properly?

            #2 Does the drainage from your sump pump and eaves troughs go to a leaching pit at least 50 feet from the lake?

            #3  Check your boat…clean before launching?  Motor working properly?  All bilge water dumped before changing lakes?

            #4  Do you have a place far from the lake for cleaning your car and/or ATV?

 

 

Website and Newsletter

The KEW newsletter is published quarterly, and sent by email to any interested person. The Website is updated randomly through the year – so check for new information and photos! Submit photos and news items to our email – listed below.

 

If you know anyone who would like to receive the KEW newsletter, send his or her e-mail address to kewatch@gmail.com. If you would like to be removed from the list, please reply to this address.

 

Satellite Photo from April 6th

You can see that Klondike Bay is ice-free, as is Ashigami Lake and most of Wanapitae.  Ice still lingered in the northeast bay on Wanapitae, and great sheets of ice remained on Lake Nipissing.

Ice is moving!

 

Lots of Ice! Starting to move.

 

Water, Ice and Land

 

Last of the Pressure Crack