by James Matthews

The Big Hawk Lake Log Chute in Algonquin Highlands has deteriorated since it was last rebuilt in 2005.

Bob Mills owns property on Halls Lake in Algonquin Highlands. He lobbied township council to rebuild the structure as it’s an important part of local lore and heritage.

The first chute was built in 1861 where Big Hawk Lake meets the Kennisis River. And there’s been one at the site since then. They were wooden troughs used back in the day in logging operations to shuttle logs to sawmills.

The Hawk Lake Log Chute is believed to be the last one in Ontario.

According to the township’s website: “This historic site is a testament to the tenacity and perseverance of the tens of thousands of men who made their living in the logging industry, and whose courage helped forged the communities of rural Ontario.”

Mills said in his letter to township council that the structure’s current state is a disaster and there’s likely only a short time left before it will be completely washed away.

“There has been no progress or change in any timelines or movement towards a replacement of the log chute as of yet,” said Chris Card, the township’s parks, recreation, and trails manager.

Mayor Liz Danielsen said the log chute has been at the fore for quite some time. She said the log chute has become increasingly damaged with each year.

“I’ll be surprised if after high water next spring any of it remains,” she said.

Within the next year or two, work will be done on a nearby dam as part of work on the Trent-Severn Waterway, she said. And the popular log chute should also get some attention.

“In my estimation, this is a really important piece of infrastructure,” Danielsen said. “It’s extremely popular.”

She recommended that the chute and the engineering required to remediate the damage be discussed by the projects and priorities committee of council.

“You can see that there’s definitely some damage on the dam,” she said. “There’s some work that will need to be done there and I want us to be ready to do anything should there be work done on the dam.”

Mills also expressed concern about the dam’s condition.

“There’s a breach low down in the concrete foundation of the dam itself that needs to be inspected,” he wrote. “During the high water flow (in) early July, water was spewing through what appeared to be an estimated eight to 10 inch hole on the concrete face just before the chute structure.”

“In previous years our hands have been tied on this project,” Deputy Mayor Jennifer Dailloux said.

The township awaited work to be completed by the crowd responsible for the Trent-Severn Waterway. Another matter that tied council’s hands was related to insurance.

“I wonder where we are on any of that,” Dailloux said. “Might that be resolved before the log chute washes away? Because it isn’t by any dearth of interest on the part of council for the last many years.”

Angie Bird, the township’s CAO, said awaiting on repairs to the dam has stymied the township taking part in the chute’s rehabilitation.

“The issue of insurance was resolved,” Bird said. “It was a number of years ago now. It will need to be engineered in order to be an insured structure.”

Danielsen said all she’s suggesting is the chute’s needs be included among the other items when council discusses its priorities and projects.

“I’m hoping we can set aside funding for engineering,” Danielsen said. “As to funding repairs or actual reconstruction of the log chute, that’s another matter indeed. “We’ll have a better idea once some engineering has been done.”

And, she said, fundraising opportunities and possible government assistance needs to be investigated.

“But I don’t believe we can let this go much longer,” the mayor said.