Workday Report - Emerson Creek - January 30, 2015

"OMG!! DO YOU KNOW WHAT YOU HAVE HERE?" Larry Halyk 

We all knew we had a hidden gem in Emerson Creek, near Cayuga, but it took two old friends of mine from many years ago to give credence to our hopes.

We hosted Larry Halyk, former senior MNR manager, Stewardship director and current president of Trout Unlimited Mid Grand Chapter president, and his good friend, Warren Yerex, retired long time biologist from GRCA. They provided the professional opinion that we have an exceptional stream here and all that’s needed is the final confirmation of the level of dissolved oxygen in the several spring sources they identified.

Seeing two senior experts so enthused was a delightful feeling that we all didn’t even notice the -14C temps, In fact at one site, the steamy mist on the stream was clear evidence of the difference in stream and spring water temperatures. The pair quickly went through the process of replicating the very successful system currently in use at Marden Creek, near Guelph (a project that earned Larry a National Environmental Award). It is so simple and inexpensive and non-invasive from a stream flow perspective, that we are anxious to get started, but we must wait a week for oxygen tests. Rats!! That’s a whole week away…like waiting for Santa Claus!!

In preparation, and to make smaller in-stream flows more easily identified, we have already purchased the digital temperature probe and extension. It will quickly identify “warm” flows within the base gravel and should speed up discovery of smaller springs we may have missed.

Wade and Mike are out there almost daily, scoping out even more of the creek, just in case we missed something. Calculating how much river gravel needed depends on the number of springs and their sizes; the sediment fence has to wait till spring, since wooden stakes cannot be driven into frozen soil.

I thought I would never be so anxious for winter to hang on, but our ability to complete this job hinges on ease on access. In the summer, it is nearly impassable. That’s what makes it an ideal nursery site; little or no human intervention all summer.



We feel very fortunate to have uncovered one of nature‘s hidden jewels. With a little TLC, we will reap the rewards of an indigenous species of fish being re-established in Haldimand County THIS YEAR.

We invite all environmentalists to keep visiting our blog at www.tutkc.blogspot.ca to follow the history of this project. A pair of new videos will soon be available for your enjoyment. To take part in this and other activities of our Chapter, either workdays, money or materials, please contact Doug Whitford at: dwhitford@cogeco.ca. Our volunteers enjoy great satisfaction by improving our local waters.

Workday Report - January 10, 2015 - Emerson Creek

Winter Water Work

Note:  The video at the end of this article is a little long (approx 14 minutes) but it's well worth the time to watch because of the unique nature of this "long forgotten" stream and its future value in the restoration of the Mill Creek watershed.

We began our day by gathering our eight volunteers at Indiana Road West, near Cayuga, where we loaded all our equipment onto two 4WD trucks. Frozen ground can be a blessing, saving us a mile-long hike in the open. Bill Christmas was finally able to attend after a long absence for health issues, to take videos and give some guidance.

We quickly realized that one of our volunteers, local landowner Matt Lessard, who became available on short notice, would be an important addition to the crew. Matt’s profession requires him to operate a chainsaw and it was he who did most of the heavy lifting here. Matt owns the section of Mill Creek on Town Line Road West at Taquanyah.

We proceeded to clean out several stream blockages and relocate the materials to best advantage, while exploring and rating the various spring sources for suitability as spawning sites. Most of these “upper” stream sources will need some technical adjustments to enable their use by the brook trout for spawning.

Two of our volunteers had never seen this stream before and they were amazed at the value of this small creek “That nobody even knew about locally”. Seeing all these springs popping up out of the ground in winter was exciting. Another newcomer was impressed at how much was accomplished in such a short time. “Hey, it’s cold out here and we work hard just to keep warm” was the reply. What a wonderful group to be a part of, he told us. He wants to come back for our next work day.

As an interesting side note: We told several others to stay at home and keep warm, because we had enough manpower already committed. Such enthusiasm is contagious, like a good disease! We hope you like the photos and the video. We had fun, especially Matt Burley, local Ted Knott Chapter member, who took a spill while moving a heavy log in the water with Wade. Chest waders helped keep him dry. At least we all had a good laugh.

We will schedule another day while we can still drive to the site, to repair and upgrade our successful sediment fencing. We will also be assisting TUC technical staff in measuring the oxygen levels in all these springs

We will let you know the date. Thanks for helping,

Wade Dowling Habitat Haldimand co-author with Bill Christmas TUTKC