By Chris Jaster
Dan Martin initially thought the massive amount of precipitation that hit southwest Saskatchewan in May and June would be good for his ranch. Two months later, he’s dealing with the down side of the rain.
So much water has come this summer that Crane Lake filled up with water for the first time in over 50 years. The precipitation caused more water to flow from Piapot Creek into Crane Lake, which has flooded out some of the land Martin ranches.
“We’re short four sections of grazing from (the lake filling up),” said Martin, who used the bottom of the lake for part of his grazing area. “The hazard for me now is I used that north field for a winter field and now my hazard will be if cows go out on the lake and fall through.
“(This winter) I’ll have to wait until the water freezes before I go to use that field or turn this back into a summer field. That’s not what I want to do because all my winter shelters are up there.”
According to Vance Sanderson, who still uses the land his grandfather homesteaded in 1911 near Crane Lake, the lake had water in it until it dried out in the 1930s. He said it filled up again in the 1950s before drying up again in the 1960s, and it has been dry ever since.
The sheer size of the recently-filled Crane Lake, which covers several sections of land, means its water is affecting numerous ranchers. Most cases aren’t as bad as Martin’s because the lake is quite shallow. Sanderson estimates the lake is no more than two or three feet deep at most points, although the middle of the lake is approximately 10 feet deep.
That, however, could change as Piapot Creek is still bringing water into the lake, although the flow of water is much less than it was earlier this summer.
Martin and Sanderson both predict the water will remain in the lake for at least a year, but they don’t think it will take much for it to disappear again.
“If we don’t get a lot of precipitation, (the heat) will soon evaporate the water out of it,” said Sanderson, whose livestock isn’t affected by the lake filling up. “We’d have to get several wet years in a row for it to continue having water in it.
“With the lake being that shallow and covering that much area, there would be a lot of evaporation from it if we get a hot, dry summer.”
This will mean Martin will have to adapt his ranch to the lake next year, but he hasn’t thought that far ahead as to what he’s going to do. Instead, he’s going to wait for the winter to come and see how that season goes before deciding what to do.
Martin is keeping a positive attitude after losing some land to Crane Lake filling up with water.
“Getting that amount of rain was nothing but good for us, but there’s a downfall to everything,” he said. “You take the good with the bad and that’s what makes a rancher a rancher.”