Chalk Lake legend turned into fact by diversby Blake Wolfe/The Scugog Standard
In the southwest corner of Scugog Township near the Uxbridge border, there lies an area of ecological significance known as Chalk Lake. And in addition to the environmental features of the area, the waters of the lake have yielded at least a glimpse into the past of human habitation along the shoreline.
Homes line the northern and western shores along Lakeridge Rd. and Chalk Lake Rd., and the area has been the site of family farms and human habitation for decades. A dance hall on the southern side of Chalk Lake, built in the 1930s, once hosted community get-togethers and still opens for special events from time to time.
Recently, the area just north of Chalk Lake has been the focus of concern for residents and politicians on both sides of the Scugog/Uxbridge boundary, as work continues at a clean fill dump site advertised as a future heliport and landing strip. The site came under fire after work continued despite negative soil sample test results, displaying excessive levels of a number of toxic chemicals, and prompting Scugog staff to pull the site’s permits.
Given the history of human habitation along its shores, Chalk Lake likely holds a number of secrets within its waters. This summer, however, one of those secrets may have been at least partially revealed.
Uxbridge resident and recreational diver Michael Bice came across the story somewhat by accident.
A recent member of the Chalk Lake neighbourhood, Mr. Bice recalled speaking with another resident about the area when the conversation turned to talk of a local woman, who, one winter in the late 1800s, disappeared beneath the ice of Chalk Lake with her wagon and team of horses while trying to cross the semi-frozen surface.
“She was never found. Obviously, they didn’t have scuba gear back then,” said Mr. Bice.
Eager to find the remains, Mr. Bice and son Dylan went snorkeling in the lake this past June.
The pair found a wagon at a depth of 30 ft. near the northern shore of Chalk Lake, which could very well belong to the woman in the story.
“The wheel spokes are long gone, but the metal frame is still intact,” said Mr. Bice. “It must have been down there a long time. Wood should last a long time in cold water, and the fact that it’s gone from this wheel means it was there for quite a while.”
As for plans to remove the wagon, Mr. Bice said that it is half-submerged in a foot of silt at the bottom of Chalk Lake. That silt also makes for poor visibility at times, which Mr. Bice said was only about four feet at the time of the dive. In addition, the wagon may serve its purpose where it lies.
“We have no plans to bring it up as it has more historical value in the location where it went through the ice,” said Mr. Bice.
The search had a spin-off effect. Working with a weighted rope dropped from a canoe, the Bices mapped the depths of Chalk Lake this summer. At its deepest near the centre, the lake hits a depth of 70 ft., said Mr. Bice.
Human activity on and around Chalk Lake is only the most recent part of the lake’s story. Formed 10,000 years ago by a receding glacier signalling the end of the last ice age (around the same time the Oak Ridges Moraine was carved out of southern Ontario), the kettle lake is the result of a leftover block of ice creating a water-filled depression in the earth.
According to Jane Sirois of the Ministry of Natural Resources, Chalk Lake is the fourth largest of 32 kettle lakes on the Oak Ridges Moraine, measuring approximately 19 hectares.
The largest kettle lake in Canada is in Puslinch, Ontario. It is approximately 160 hectares.
The lake’s surrounding wetlands also contribute base flow to a major headwater tributary of Lynde Creek.
Wildlife in the area is also abundant. According to Ms. Sirois, Chalk Lake and its surrounding environs boast a number of plant and animal species, including 25 ‘locally significant’ plant species - species in which “there are 20 or less occurrences within a local ‘eco-district’ such as the Oak Ridges Moraine.”
Fish species living in the waters of Chalk Lake include the brown bullhead, white sucker, largemouth bass, pumpkinseed, central mudminnow, bluntnose minnow and rainbow darter.
The lake and its surrounding wetlands also provide a stopover point for migrating waterfowl, said Ms. Sirois, who added that the lake supports “provincially significant” wetlands as well as a noteworthy fen community (a wetland that occurs on peat and calcium carbonate deposits), measuring approximately two hectares in size and fed by groundwater coming out along the southern edge of Chalk Lake.
“This fen community is one of only a few on the Oak Ridges Moraine,” she said. “It is also one of only a few dozen fens known to exist in southern Ontario south of the Canadian Shield.”
As for the story of the wagon, Mr. Bice has future dives planned in which he hopes to unveil more of the story.
“I’m positive that her bones will always be there,” said Mr. Bice. “They’ll be preserved in the cold water and it’s our quest to find them. Who knows what else is down there?”
Homes line the northern and western shores along Lakeridge Rd. and Chalk Lake Rd., and the area has been the site of family farms and human habitation for decades. A dance hall on the southern side of Chalk Lake, built in the 1930s, once hosted community get-togethers and still opens for special events from time to time.
Recently, the area just north of Chalk Lake has been the focus of concern for residents and politicians on both sides of the Scugog/Uxbridge boundary, as work continues at a clean fill dump site advertised as a future heliport and landing strip. The site came under fire after work continued despite negative soil sample test results, displaying excessive levels of a number of toxic chemicals, and prompting Scugog staff to pull the site’s permits.
Given the history of human habitation along its shores, Chalk Lake likely holds a number of secrets within its waters. This summer, however, one of those secrets may have been at least partially revealed.
Uxbridge resident and recreational diver Michael Bice came across the story somewhat by accident.
A recent member of the Chalk Lake neighbourhood, Mr. Bice recalled speaking with another resident about the area when the conversation turned to talk of a local woman, who, one winter in the late 1800s, disappeared beneath the ice of Chalk Lake with her wagon and team of horses while trying to cross the semi-frozen surface.
“She was never found. Obviously, they didn’t have scuba gear back then,” said Mr. Bice.
Eager to find the remains, Mr. Bice and son Dylan went snorkeling in the lake this past June.
The pair found a wagon at a depth of 30 ft. near the northern shore of Chalk Lake, which could very well belong to the woman in the story.
“The wheel spokes are long gone, but the metal frame is still intact,” said Mr. Bice. “It must have been down there a long time. Wood should last a long time in cold water, and the fact that it’s gone from this wheel means it was there for quite a while.”
As for plans to remove the wagon, Mr. Bice said that it is half-submerged in a foot of silt at the bottom of Chalk Lake. That silt also makes for poor visibility at times, which Mr. Bice said was only about four feet at the time of the dive. In addition, the wagon may serve its purpose where it lies.
“We have no plans to bring it up as it has more historical value in the location where it went through the ice,” said Mr. Bice.
The search had a spin-off effect. Working with a weighted rope dropped from a canoe, the Bices mapped the depths of Chalk Lake this summer. At its deepest near the centre, the lake hits a depth of 70 ft., said Mr. Bice.
Human activity on and around Chalk Lake is only the most recent part of the lake’s story. Formed 10,000 years ago by a receding glacier signalling the end of the last ice age (around the same time the Oak Ridges Moraine was carved out of southern Ontario), the kettle lake is the result of a leftover block of ice creating a water-filled depression in the earth.
According to Jane Sirois of the Ministry of Natural Resources, Chalk Lake is the fourth largest of 32 kettle lakes on the Oak Ridges Moraine, measuring approximately 19 hectares.
The largest kettle lake in Canada is in Puslinch, Ontario. It is approximately 160 hectares.
The lake’s surrounding wetlands also contribute base flow to a major headwater tributary of Lynde Creek.
Wildlife in the area is also abundant. According to Ms. Sirois, Chalk Lake and its surrounding environs boast a number of plant and animal species, including 25 ‘locally significant’ plant species - species in which “there are 20 or less occurrences within a local ‘eco-district’ such as the Oak Ridges Moraine.”
Fish species living in the waters of Chalk Lake include the brown bullhead, white sucker, largemouth bass, pumpkinseed, central mudminnow, bluntnose minnow and rainbow darter.
The lake and its surrounding wetlands also provide a stopover point for migrating waterfowl, said Ms. Sirois, who added that the lake supports “provincially significant” wetlands as well as a noteworthy fen community (a wetland that occurs on peat and calcium carbonate deposits), measuring approximately two hectares in size and fed by groundwater coming out along the southern edge of Chalk Lake.
“This fen community is one of only a few on the Oak Ridges Moraine,” she said. “It is also one of only a few dozen fens known to exist in southern Ontario south of the Canadian Shield.”
As for the story of the wagon, Mr. Bice has future dives planned in which he hopes to unveil more of the story.
“I’m positive that her bones will always be there,” said Mr. Bice. “They’ll be preserved in the cold water and it’s our quest to find them. Who knows what else is down there?”
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