Upwards of 220 students from Aspen View Public School Division headed out to Skeleton Lake March 12 to take part in the annual ice fishing trip.
Students from Edwin Parr Composite School, Thorhild Central School, H. A. Kostash School from Smoky Lake, Grassland School, as well as Boyle School sent students from Grades 7-12 to take part in the event.
EPC teacher and event organizer Robert Kerr said that overall, everything went really well.
“(Principal Desmond) Nolan and I got there early and started drilling holes at about 7 a.m.,” Kerr said. “We drilled 300 holes out at Skeleton Lake, and they were well used.”
He said when they were drilling the holes, he found that the ice was very thick this year.
“They were so thick, they almost went as deep as the engine,” Kerr said. “It’s probably the thickest ice that I have ever seen out on the lake.”
He said the really cold temperatures prior to the recent warm weather kept the ice thick as well.
“We actually took the EPC students out there a couple of weeks before as well,” Kerr continued. “We checked out the ice conditions, and that they understood how to prep and to make sure the boots they were wearing were both weather and water proof.”
He said besides the students, the staff members were out roaming and helping out the students, and even did a little fishing themselves.
“Each school was well-represented division wide,” Kerr said. “The only schools who did not send anyone this year were Smith and Rochester Schools.”
Kerr added the division has held the event for about the last six years.
“Nolan and I first started the event when he was vice-principal at Thorhild and I was principal at Grassland,” he said. “We have been doing it since then, and it’s been very successful.”
Kerr added that as far as safety goes, they usually have a really good relationship with Alberta Fish and Wildlife.
“They usually come out to the event themselves and hold a discussion about different fish in the lake, as well as rules and regulations involved with fishing,” he said. “But this year, they were down to a skeleton crew and had nobody to spare, so they were unable to come as a result.”
He added that Fish and Wildlife officer Denyse Gullion usually makes sure that they have an event licence in order to hold the event.
“We also set up a camera in a tent so the kids can see how a camera works underwater, and see that there are actually fish under the water,” Kerr said. “The only major safety concern we had this year was the deep snow this year, which could cause vehicles to get stuck on the ice. The buses always stay ashore when they drop the kids of.”
Overall, he said he was quite impressed with how prepared the students were when they got to the actual event.
Catching fish
Kerr said that there was so much walking around during the day that it’s really hard to say how many fish were caught.
“I was bouncing from person to person,” he said. “As I walked around, another kid would tell me that they got one, and I would go over, congratulate them, take their picture, and then show them how to put the fish back into the hole properly, which was head first.”
He said that all fish were all catch-and-release.
“Part of the teaching that goes on is showing good stewardship in our lakes,” Kerr said. “Putting the fish back for somebody else to catch is one part of doing that.”
Teacher Stacey Kanarek from Grassland School said her 22 students managed to catch four jack fish in the lake.
“Of course we let them go,” Kanarek said. “But they were not really a good size anyway, so it did not really matter.”
She said it was a beautiful day on the lake and the kids were really engaged in what they were doing.
“Some of them found it was a good time to relax, while others thought it was a fun time to socialize with their friends instead of being in class doing work,” Kanarek said.
She said that overall, it was a great learning experience for the children from every school to connect with nature.
