Tillicum Beach is located 3 km west Highway 56, approximately 16 km southeast of Camrose on the shores of Dried Meat Lake that is a naturally wide section of the Battle River.
Dried Meat Lake took the name from the Cree that traditionally lived east of the Battle River, while the Blackfoot remained west of the river. The river defined their territories and was the location of many clashes between the tribes, giving rise to the waterway’s name.
The stunning lake view from the top of the valley makes it easy to imagine the lake’s role as an important transportation route, especially when the roads turned to mud every spring.
In the early 1900s, settlers who came to farm the area’s rich soil were ferried across the lake on a 9-metre boat with a wood-burning steam engine.
In 1975 the Edberg Weir was built and then heightened in 2010 to dam the waters of the river as a drinking source for the City of Camrose.
The weir was built with an eight-bay step-pool fish ladder to allow fish into the lake from downstream. The dam has also created stable water levels, ideal for paddling. The maximum depth of the lake now is 3.7 metres. The lake is naturally nutrient rich and gets additional nutrient loads, so algae blooms are common in the summer.
The Lake is a true recreational attraction for canoeing, kayaking, motor boating, fishing, and wildlife viewing. On the lake’s eastern shore, there is a Tillicum Beach Park, managed by Camrose County. It has a campground and a day-use area that offers a playground, ball diamonds, firepits, a picnic shelter, flush toilets, and a boat launch.