Boating

[olscuzbut]

Beautiful sunny Sunday morning, no wind,  and no pond to go boating in.  Still waiting for our city parks to fill the pond to a level we can actually get our boats into the water.  This has been a city project for the last 3 years.  Still waiting.  At least before it became a city park when it was a private golf course, they kept the water level up and allowed us to use it.  Municipal government at its best!!!

[mike_victoriabc]

You just might have to interest the Mayor in model boating! That is how the Harrison Pond on Dallas Road came about - the Mayor wanted a place to go sailing. Worked out well ever since - that was early 50's.

[olscuzbut]

Good suggestion Mike, but I kinda think our mayor has other interests.  The only time you hear anything about him is when he is sitting in council meetings.  Doesn't appear to have any outside interests. 

[NickelBelter]

The 'local' pond that our club runs in weeds-over every summer, leaving us homeless.  The conservancy that owns the park it's in doesn't want to add anything to the water, they want to keep it natural... obviously we're looking for a new permanent home.  There are some nice spots near where I live but as I'm an hour outside of town, it's hard to get the whole club to come down.  :p

[west coast tug]

Get some Copper sulfide and put it in a paper bag in the pond , The water will look blue in color and wipe the plats out , Will not hurt the fish or frogs , But understand that the weeds feed them , all you need would be about a kilo of it .
Put it in in the pond early spring.
This is how some of the golf courses around here deal with the mill-foil weed . 

[NickelBelter]

We don't own the pond, and if we put anything in there without permission we'd be permanently homeless, legal-style. 

These are some photos a club member took a week or so ago... only an airboat could make it through now. 

[olscuzbut]

Wow! that is sad.  Got to be some kind of bio-hazard in that condition. 

[west coast tug]

Throw a metal gate in and pull it across with some car/ tractor. Mound it up on the side , Helped a friend on his property do it last year.

[sea monkey]

Any fish species, like carp, that could eat the weed?

[NickelBelter]

They've tried putting fish in but the fish don't last long.  I don't know if the pond is too shallow to overwinter or just too filled up with toxic goose crap. 

Raking it out has been tried, but not to the extent that is needed.  Last year it was pretty bad for our Regatta and a work crew showed up right at the start, raked for maybe an hour and pulled out enough stuff to fill a bobcat bucket, then called it a day.  It worked a little bit, but a crew should really be doing that every day for a few hours.  That costs money which is why it doesn't get done. 

[NickelBelter]

The full story, as it was told to me (I've only been a member for a year) is that the pond was redeveloped with money from a wealthy family and the club was asked for their input.  It's a really great spot, with washrooms right behind where the photos were taken, drink machines, and a space with a nice big roof on it to shelter from rainstorms.  The big glass building across from the pond is a cafe where members sometimes meet for breakfast.  The ONLY problem is the weed issue, and the park conservancy has been told about it time and time again but does not want to take action. 

[sea monkey]

Maybe go to the local paper and try and stir up a bit of interest  great family resources now unusable because of council inaction.
Nothing like bad PR to get a council moving.

[olscuzbut]

And another thought.  Catch or buy some uncleaned fish and throw them in the pond.  Might stir up some interest in cleaning it up. (of course you don't tell any one)  lol.