Southern Alberta
Southern Alberta is a region located in the Canadian province of Alberta. In 2004, the region's population was approximately 272,017.Calgary in the
Vulcan County
Vulcan County is a municipal district in Alberta, Canada. Located in Census Division No. 5, its municipal office is located in the Town of Vulcan.
History
Vulcan County was originally established in 1951.
Geography Communities and lo ...
.
The reservoir is part of the Carseland-Bow River Headworks System owned and operated by
Alberta Environment and Parks
The Ministry of Environment and Protected Areas of Alberta (also commonly called Alberta Environment and Protected Areas) is the Alberta provincial ministry of the Executive Council of Alberta responsible for environmental issues and policy as we ...
Oldman River
The Oldman River is a river in southern Alberta, Canada. It flows roughly west to east from the Rocky Mountains, through the communities of Fort Macleod, Lethbridge, and on to Grassy Lake, where it joins the Bow River to form the South Saskatchew ...
drainage basin, but most water in it arrives via canals from the
Bow River
The Bow River is a river in Alberta, Canada. It begins within the Canadian Rocky Mountains and winds through the Alberta foothills onto the prairies, where it meets the Oldman River, the two then forming the South Saskatchewan River. These w ...
. The reservoir was built by British-owned Canada Land and Irrigation Company and named after J. D. McGregor, the company's Canadian manager who became Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba in 1929.
History
The reservoir occupies part of the Snake Valley, prehistorically, a thoroughfare for members of the Blackfoot Confederacy. The first European settlers arrived mid-nineteenth century.
Ranching was well established by the 1880s. Shortly after, homesteading and farming were prevalent in the valley. The rich soil and dry climate led to an interest in irrigation. Construction began in 1909 on a major reservoir.
Two dams were built - one in the north near
Milo, Alberta
Milo is a village in Vulcan County, Alberta, Canada. It is located on Highway 542, approximately southeast of the City of Calgary and east of the Town of High River. Milo is mainly an agricultural service community.
Demographics
In the 2021 ...
and a second, south dam. McGregor Lake was created when the Canada Land and Irrigation Company completed the South and North McGregor dams. Some of the water in the reservoir comes from the Old Man River, but a canal was also constructed to bring water from the Bow River near Carseland. Construction was a ten-year project, the reservoir began filling in 1920. It was administered as a private company until 1950, when the federal
Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration The Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration (PFRA) was a branch under Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), a department of the Federal Government of Canada.
The Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Administration was established by an Act of Parliam ...
assumed control and modified the dam into a zoned earthfill structure from its previously homogeneous state. In 1973, McGregor Lake and its control structures were transferred to Alberta Environment.
Sports and recreation
Swimming and boating access is at McGregor Lake Recreation Area (formerly Milo Campground), an Alberta Provincial Park site with camping facilities at the northwest corner of the lake. Amenities include a boat launch, playgrounds,
and picnic shelters. Small boats can also be launched at Lomond Crossing, where Secondary Road 531 crosses the lake.
Sport fishing yields
Walleye
The walleye (''Sander vitreus'', synonym ''Stizostedion vitreum''), also called the yellow pike or yellow pickerel, is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the Northern United States. It is a North American close relat ...
,
Yellow Perch
The yellow perch (''Perca flavescens''), commonly referred to as perch, striped perch, American perch, American river perch or preacher is a freshwater perciform fish native to much of North America. The yellow perch was described in 1814 by Sam ...
,
Lake Whitefish
The lake whitefish (''Coregonus clupeaformis'') is a species of freshwater whitefish from North America. Lake whitefish are found throughout much of Canada and parts of the northern United States, including all of the Great Lakes. The lake white ...
Northern Pike
The northern pike (''Esox lucius'') is a species of carnivorous fish of the genus ''Esox'' (the pikes). They are typical of brackish and fresh waters of the Northern Hemisphere (''i.e.'' holarctic in distribution). They are known simply as a p ...
(Jackfish). Spawning lake whitefish can be seen in October at the sluice gate on the northwest corner of the lake. Local residents have reported catching up to 10 kilogram (22 lb) northern pike.
A campground, picnic area, and boat launch are provided at the north end of the lake.
McGregor Lake has attractive, clear water. Algal concentrations are usually low and do not interfere with recreational use.
Activities enjoyed at the lake include picnicking, swimming, fishing,
wind surfing
Windsurfing is a wind propelled water sport that is a combination of sailing and surfing. It is also referred to as "sailboarding" and "boardsailing", and emerged in the late 1960s from the aerospace and surf culture of California. Windsurfing g ...
, canoeing, water skiing and power boating. A major cottage development has formed in recent years on the east shore of the lake near the village of Milo.
American white pelicans and double-crested cormorants often forage on this large prairie reservoir from April to September.
In spring and fall, the lake is an important staging area for waterfowl, including snow geese, Canada geese and greater white-fronted geese. Blue-winged teals and northern shovelers can be seen in spring and summer. The surrounding dry prairie uplands offer opportunities to observe marbled godwits and long-billed curlews. Prairie plants include such exotic species as the cushion cactus with its burgundy blooms and the prickly pear cactus with its prominent yellow blossoms; both flower in June.
Agriculture and industry
The lake was built for irrigation of farmland. In 2000, the lake had of reserves and was at 85% of maximum capacity. This is enough water to provide almost with a typical 24 inches (610 mm) of watering. Most of the irrigation cropland is alfalfa and clover for hay, with canola, corn, and specialty crops also supplied. The land up to the ''full supply level'' of the reservoir is ''Crown'', or government-controlled land - plus the Crown also owns about 30% of the land above the full supply level, most of which is leased for grazing.
Since at least 1938, McGregor Lake was fished commercially for northern pike. The lake has been fished commercially for lake whitefish since about 1948. During the 1980s, the mean annual commercial catch was a total annual average of 85,964.3 kg of lake whitefish and northern pike fish. This is 200,000 pounds worth close to a million dollars. A 1982 investigation of pesticide and PCB levels in McGregor Lake fish found that concentrations were low and well below safe consumption limits.
The area around McGregor Lake has significant oil and gas discoveries with many large resource companies active, including Husky, Encana, and Total. On June 13, 2007 a day-long session for observing water-born spill mitigation was held at the south end of McGregor Lake. Alberta Energy and Utilities Board required all companies operating in the area to attend. About one hundred workers watched from behind a roped-off area as crews laid out yellow containment booms and demonstrated methods of containing potential lake spills.The Pipeline, June 2007 /ref>