A small but dedicated group of anglers and boaters gathered at the Elks Lodge last Thursday evening to discuss plans for the reopening of the Rafferty Marina boat launch this spring.
They talked about the complications they'll face regarding the late spring and the lowering and then expected increase in the water level in the Rafferty reservoir, said spokesman Barry Dies.
He said the marina committee decided to start with the resetting of the aluminum dock for starters and then set up the wooden dock when weather and water levels stabilize.
"We'll also do the washroom cleanup, pick up garbage and all that stuff," said Dies, who added that the marina committee has again signed a one-year leasing arrangement with the Saskatchewan Water Security Agency for operation of the marina.
"We're still trying to arrange for a longer lease, but for now that's all we can get which means we must submit an audited financial statement to them every year," Dies said.
"The community has been good in terms of financial support, work-in-kind and donations of materials. We've had cement loaders, backhoes out there without charge from companies who see the value in keeping the boat launch area clean and working," he added. "Without that, we couldn't do it. Because of that, we've been able to hold the line on expenses the past couple of years and we'll still be able to rebuild the 48-foot dock and get the 48-foot aluminum dock out there. I was out there the other day. The wooden dock is still buried under snow," he said with a smile.
There is also a half-ton truck still partially submerged near the dock area thanks to a misguided winter ice-fishing expedition that went wrong when the fisher drove the vehicle over an active underground spring which meant the ice wasn't thick enough to hold the weight.
"It's about a quarter-mile out from the dock, but not too far from the shoreline. There's also an ice shack left over. Looks like a fire took it and it was just abandoned. So we'd like to have those items cleared up and cleaned up before the season begins," Dies said, noting that there isn't much the marina committee can do about those two projects other than to remind those responsible to take ownership of the leftovers.
"They both can become hazards and environmental concerns," he said.
The marina group has conducted discussions with the RM of Estevan regarding potential cabin development in and around the marina area, but no advancements have been made on that topic. He said the focus was more on floods and recovery these past two years.
"The only area we can address right now is the marina itself, that fenced in lot we have, the docks, parking lot, washrooms, grass cutting, picnic tables and so on," Dies added.
Security cameras that were installed about a year ago have helped keep the number of vandalism incidents down and they have also recorded a larger volume of traffic than what was expected by the marina group ... people in vehicles visiting the site, not only to go fishing or boating but to also just spend some time near the water's edge.
"Our main goal this year will be to maintain, use it well and keep cleaning it up. We've talked about installing a collection box out there for an honour payment seeing as how Boundary Dam is now part of Woodlawn Regional Park and requires a fee payment there. We can't do that because we don't have 24-hour security, but an honour payment, well, we talked about it. We've had some people make free-will donations every spring. I know one guy from North Dakota who uses it during the summer and he's given us $50 to $70 every year just as a donation. So it's all welcomed."
There has also been talk about building a fish filleting shack, but for the same reason they can't provide security 24 hours a day, they also can't supply cleanup and disposal every day and as Dies pointed out quite succinctly ... "you can't leave fish entrails sitting around for long. It gets bad pretty quick."
The fishing at Rafferty the past season was good to excellent, he said and should still be good this year with plenty of walleye in the lake.
During the course of the meeting, Nathan Wahl was elected chairman of the Rafferty Marina Inc. committee.
"Our only message to marina users this year is to please respect the site. Take your garbage home with you because we haven't been able to keep a regular garbage can/disposal system intact there due to vandals. But as I said, vandalism incidents are down, our electrical panel is secure. What we worry about now are flood conditions cropping up again, but if that doesn't happen, it could be a good year on the Rafferty water," he said in conclusion.
