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Publisher’s Note
HAPPY NEW YEAR! HAPPY THREE KINGS! As we are now in 2019, new year, new beginnings, new challenges and new opportunities. Everyone is entitled to make their new year’s resolution for as long as they keep it in mind and make sure that they do it to the best of their ability. When I was young [...]
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Crawling Valley Reservoir and Bassano Dam

This month’s day trip takes us to Southeastern Alberta towards Brooks, to the Crawling Valley Reservoir and Campground. We also visited Bassano Dam since it is located in the same area.

A beautiful and sunny Saturday morning had us heading east on Highway #1. My wife Ludy packed a picnic lunch and a thermos of coffee and we headed out early. Sometimes we toss in the Coleman Stove and lawn chairs for added luxury but today we decided to travel light and took only our warm clothes and hiking sticks.

Given that it is winter, the vast and beautiful Crawling Valley Campground was closed, however the gates were left open. That allows people, including us, to drive out onto the enormous man-made lake known as Crawling Valley Reservoir. This large lake was created in 1984 and is used for recreation as well as supplying water to irrigate the farmer’s crops.

Although my wife was a bit fearful of having our car out on a frozen lake I was born and raised in Canada, which has winter for 6 months of the year and it is no big deal. The lake at this time of year has about 40 cm of thick ice on it and a vehicle requires about 10 cm to support it.

While driving around on the glare ice we visited some of the fisherman on the lake. Yes, fishing continues year round even in very cold -25 C temperatures! In the winter the fisherman use a small hut, like an outhouse, or put up a tent, with heaters, to block the wind and cold. They then drill several holes each about 30 cm wide, using an ice auger, through the ice. They drop their fishing line and bait into the hole, hoping to catch the big one! They may use a fishing rod, or some guys use a rig that pops up with a flag on it when a fish gets on the line. The group we visited on the lake was successful and up to that point had caught a couple of fish big enough to eat, about 5 kgs. Nothing better than a fish fry in the middle of a frozen lake in Canada!

So for those people who are new to Canadian life, fishing does continue throughout our winters. You don’t even need a boat to get onto the middle of the lake!

The second stop on our day trip was only 30 minutes away so we continued to the quaint little town of Bassano, Alberta. Less than 10 km outside of the town is the awesome Bassano Dam, built in 1914, even older than my wife, built in 1955!

The dam at this time of year has a low amount of water going over it but the various views, including a walk across the dam, provided us with a spectacular scene of frozen ice, mist and the roar of water cascading over the giant dam. There is an attractive picnic area high above the dam (comfort rooms in the summer) and we enjoyed the tasty lunch my wife prepared. The best time of year to visit Bassano Dam is April or May when the melting snow fills the reservoir and river to capacity.

If you are looking for an exciting and FREE! day trip, summer or winter, Crawling Valley Reservoir and Bassano Dam are worth the drive!

Steve Tarzwell

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