Captain Ayre Lake, aka Capt Ayre Lake, is a small water feature in the Municipal District of Provost, in Alberta. Calling it a lake might be a bit impetuous. I mean, if there’s a version of micropenis particular to hydrological features, this lake has it. More of a pond on steroids, really. Whatever. It was nearby, my weather apps said it would be all clear for paddling, and the lake was large enough to hold a paddle board.
I checked to make sure I had my paddling gear and hit the road. Oh, and before anyone freaks out about distracted driving, the camera is chest mounted and voice controlled. It’s a setup for a project I’m working on and I like to test refinements to the design. It was a nice drive with pleasant weather until it wasn’t.
The sky was starting to look pretty sus when I rolled up to the lakeside and I had already pushed through some showers on the way there. It was obvious my foray on the water would be limited. The thing was, I had had no time on the water in the two previous weeks. I was in the middle of a camping trip at Carolside Reservoir in Special Areas No. 4 of Alberta when word came that my father-in-law was declining and I had better get to the farm quick, so I did. This was my first chance to paddle since August 29th and I was not passing up even a short jaunt on a Mini-Me sized body of water.
I’ve known for ages that any forecast from Weather Network carries the same import as a politician’s promise, but I expected better of Windy. It’s my cute little app that saves me from getting blown to the wrong side of the lake, which almost happened to me today. Fortunately it was a small lake and I fought my way back to shore. Windy is now added to my list of “lying liars that lie” apps.
Alberta, 2025-09-12
Provost, Alberta, 2025-09-12
I started out with calm water and brighter skies, then the clouds rolled in and it got progressively darker over the next hour. The wind also started to come up, making it more work to continue the second circuit of the lake.
The lake itself is pretty, but in a plain sort of way. Prairie lakes in Alberta always lack drama in the local landscape and they aren’t the best places to vibe with nature. They’re always near a busy road and there’s always some redneck rube with a loud, custom tuned diesel roaring past whenever you’re trying to shoot video. Frustrating. Prairie skies make up for it. There can be a good sunset or a rippin’ fine storm that puts some drama back in the scene.
Did I mention that the lake is small? Because it is. I made two circuits and clocked 3 km on the nose before the wind and rain hit. It was weird because there was a moment of calm where I got the top image. The wind just faded and the air got more and more oppressive. Then the wind and the rain both hit hard at the same time and I found myself regretting lingering on the water for a good reflection shot. I fought my way to shore and set about packing up a wet paddle board.
The most worthwhile part of the paddle was not being on the water itself, but how seeing the sights of the campground brought back some old memories for me. I used to come out to Capt Ayre Lake back in the day when my family lived on an acreage an hour to the south and east and it was an occasional fixture in our lives. It brought my daughter a lot of joy and I made some good images there. Playing in the playground with her, splashing each other in the lake, and even taking pictures together. Being there and seeing and feeling brought old memories top of mind again, and that was lovely.
This is certainly not a destination you would plan a paddling trip at and I found the campground to be very overpriced for what it offers. It skates by on the fact that there is nothing else anywhere close resembling a lake and the locals can be gouged accordingly. Still, if you’re already in the area, it’s worthwhile as long as you stick to the day use portion of the park. Especially if there are some good memories to revisit while you’re on the water.
I had my OM System Tough TG-7 on the water with me, but only wound up using it for GPS tracking, to my shame. All of today’s images came from my Samsung Galaxy Ultra S23 mobile phone.,