The family fishing derby, with the theme “Take a child fishing”, attracted over 500  adult and youth  on June 7th  and 8th. A large assortment of prizes, including fishing equipment, life jackets, gift certificates and other  articles were presented to adults and youth  registered for the weekend events.  Participants at the weekend family fishing derby came from a wide area of Central Nova Scotia, HRM, including visitors from Cape Breton, Ontario and Missouri, USA.

            Members of the Uniacke Heritage Society and community volunteers spent two full days removing debris from Murphy Lake and along the shoreline in preparation for this year’s derbies. Two boats were used to recover motor vehicle tires, bicycles, picnic tables,  pressure treated timber, steel and plastic pipe along with other waste materials that amounted to two truck-loads being transported to the municipal waste disposal site.

Murphy Lake has become a popular angling destination during the entire angling season for anglers of all ages, including those with physical disabilities  The easy accessibility to the lake shore with eighty  metres of barrier-free boardwalk attracts many recreational anglers from near and far. Routine surveillance by the Department of  Natural Resources conservation officers ensures that anglers are in possession of a valid fishing license and do not exceed the bag limit of 5 trout. 

These annual fishing derbies are made possible through cooperation with  the Department of Inland Fisheries and Aquaculture, Department of Natural Resources, RCMP Windsor Detachment, Anchor Industries Society and contributions from various  commercial and  social welfare organizations.

A special thanks to the 24 community volunteers who participate most effectively with Uniacke Heritage Society members to make these recreational events such enjoyable experiences for so many adults and youth.

            A massive clean-up of Murphy Lake  behind the Uniacke Community Fire Hall,  netted two truck-loads of "Illegal dumping materials". The team consisted of Tyler Lambert, Mr. Joe Lambert and Nick Bryk. (check out our photo gallery for photos).

            This hard working team used two boats to recover 15 motor vehicle tires,  motor vehicle  wheels,  bicycles, concrete clumps, metal and wooden components from the former skating rink, picnic tables, traffic signs,  steel oil drums, large plastic and metal drain pipes,  picnic tables and many other articles of domestic refuse.

             The Uniacke Heritage Society is extremely grateful for the diligent and ambitious efforts of these 3 residents over the weekend of May 30th and 31st.  The Heritage Society also appreciates the assistance of the Municipality of East Hants, through a small tourism grant,  in making this pre-fishing derby event possible.  Their effective response to the transportation of the debris from Murphy Lake to the Municipal disposal site is also greatly appreciated.

           The job of cleaning-up Murphy Lake is not completed.  A considerable amount of refuse still remains in the deeper waters of this lake and this is expected to be removed during the summer months, if financial  and labour resources can be obtained. 

         An inspector specialist from Environment Nova Scotia examined the content of the refuse recovered from Murphy Lake and the natural environment adjacent to Murphy Lake and Uniacke Lake,  and is researching possible resources for remedial action to preserve the natural attributes of this prominent community recreational area.

   A Happy Angler

 {mosimage)  MURPHY LAKE CLEAN-UP