Chapter 8 Canatara Park, 1970 – 1979 1 Highlighted #’s refer to those pages in the original binder. They may not be shown in sequence.
Summary of Changes, Proposals, Issues, Activities And Management Policies in Canatara Park: 1970 - 1979 During the decade a large number of changes occurred in the following six sections of the park. The Beach: To minimize erosion along the shoreline in the 1972 – 1975 period when the water level in Lake Huron was very high, three major projects were completed. The breakwater at the west end of the beach was enlarged, eight groynes were installed along the entire shoreline and a gabion basket wall was built at the east end of the beach to protect the washroom and lifeguard station. In addition, the old change house at the beach was demolished and a washroom moved to the site in 1971. The Dunes: In the 1970 – 73 period the sand dunes between the beach and the large beach parking lot were stripped of their trees, shrubs and dune grass, graded with a bulldozer, covered with topsoil and seeded with grass to create a manicured lawn. This “dune beautification project” resulted in a large amount of sand blowing from the beach into the parking lot. In the 1974 – 79 period a dune restoration project was initiated to reintroduce the native vegetation back into these dunes. 2 Lake Chipican: In the 1969 – 70 period a channel was dredged around the south end of the lake creating three small islands at this location. The marsh between this channel and the park road was filled with the dredged sediment and the reclaimed land was covered with topsoil and seeded with grass to create a manicured lawn. In 1975 the channel was extended northward up the east side of the lake to produce a large “island sanctuary for wildlife.” In 1974 Lake Chipican and the area around it was designated a Nature Preserve. A nature trail that circles the lake was built and a large number of trees and shrubs were planted between the channel and the park roads to provide a buffer for trail users. A bird observation tower was also erected at the south end of the lake. Tarzanland: In the 1970 – 73 period this woodlot was converted into a formal “Arboretum” consisting of large “specimen” trees, while most of the small trees and shrubs were removed. In addition several areas in the low ground on the west side of Tarzanland were filled with earth as part of the golf course project, as shown on Map Y1. However this Arboretum project came to an abrupt halt in 1974 when (3) Tarzanland was designated a Nature Preserve. In the 1974 – 79 period a large number of native trees, 1