The Skeleton Lake Fish Culture Station opened in 1938 to help
rebuild the plummeting fish populations in the local lakes and
streams. The station also produced employment for many locals who
were left jobless by the Depression. The men were paid 25 cents a
day to dig the fish ponds and build the four buildings needed to
get the hatchery running. In the early years the ponds were home to
thousands of bass fingerlings, which were used to restock the local
waterways. The hatchery also cultured small numbers of walleye and
trout.
Restocking efforts were so successful locally that by the 1950’s
bass and walleye populations were fairly stable, so the focus of
the hatchery changed to trout. By 1955 the only fish being raised
at the hatchery were brook trout, splake and lake trout. There was
some attempt to raise rainbow trout however they could not over
winter the fish successfully. In the mid-80’s the Ministry of
Natural Resources noted another decline in walleye, so once again
the focus of the hatchery shifted. After a few years the station
was at peak production stocking between 150 and 200 inland lakes
each year with some 500,000 trout and 150,000 walleye
fingerlings.
Over the years the fish culture station changed as the methods
of raising fish evolved. In 1966-1968 cement raceways were built as
well as better equipped buildings. In 1985 a visitor center was
added and shortly after a very popular fish feeding station was
built.
Even with its great achievements the Ministry of Natural
Resources choose to decommission the Skeleton Lake Fish Culture
Station in 1991 as part of a reorganization. The property was
eventually sold to the Township of Muskoka Lakes for use as a
public park. With a lot of work by local residents and the students
at nearby Watt Public School the park was restored and facilities
were built.
As you walk along the trails you will see a lot of evidence of
the former hatchery. Many of the ponds are being restored to a more
natural state, but you can easily imagine what it must have been
like. The trails at the hatchery pass through many habitats
including deciduous forest, flood plain, river shoreline, a meadow,
ponds, wetland and a beautiful waterfall. There are interpretive
signs along the path that characterize the surrounding
environment.
The cache is a quick and easy find, but I encourage you to spend
some time here. Hike the trails, have a picnic or fish for perch or
rock bass at the lake. The park is equipped with washrooms, picnic
tables and bbq’s. While you're in the park make sure to do "MFT - A
Very Fishy Cache".
