Information on Lake Newell

Lake Newell Wind       Characteristics

Wind conditions on Newell are generally variable in both direction and strength with no consistent patterns.  You can be active on the water for about six months of the year so weather knowledge of the area is essential.  Approaching storms are clearly visible. The shore line is generally devoid of vegetation unless you are close to Kinbrook Island or the North Lake communities of Bantry Bay and Lake Newell Resort.  There is little interference/turbulence from shoreline obstructions.   Conditions are generally gusty with a few days of steady consistent wind.   When fronts move through plan for big wind shifts as well as possible extreme wind strength changes.   Check your weather apps.  Apple Weather phone app has a good wind forecast service that seems pretty reliable.  During windy days the wind tends to blow at different strengths over the course of a day.  We have many high and low pressure changes especially in the spring, late summer and early fall.  Winds may blow hard for awhile then cycle down a notch in strength before increasing in strength again.  At times gusts may blast through with the increased wind strength lasting a few minutes before diminishing.  

Lake Newell 

Lake Newell water is sourced from the Bow River, via a diversion dam south of Bassano.  It is an irrigation reservoir, the largest reservoir in Southern Alberta being about 12km long and up to 5km across.  The lake water is generally cleaner when compared to natural Alberta lakes as the water turnover due to irrigation and urban use is much higher than a typical natural lake in Alberta.  With the amount of sunshine in southern Alberta water temperatures can be a little bit warmer than other areas although with winds, turnover may cause temperatures to drop.   Maximum depth is just over 60 feet. 

Reservoir draw down

rivers.alberta.ca 

If the lake water goes down more than two feet hazardous underwater conditions can be a problem for boats that draw more than two feet draft.   The website above will give information on full service level and current level of Lake Newell.  The Eastern Irrigation District provides depth maps of Lake Newell and using a depth sounder in larger sailboats will be a benefit.  Locals can provide some useful advice as well.  Most areas of Lake Newell will be safe however there are three or four small areas of the lake to avoid if you have long daggerboards, centerboards or long swing keels.

Windsurfing 

Most windsurfing activities are taking place from Kinbrook Island Provincial Park at the day use and boat launch parking lot or Newell Sailing Club ( if you are a member) as there is reasonably good access to the water with lots of grass rigging sites.  

Other good access is from White Pelican Park at Lake Newell Resort on the North West corner of the lake as well as the Lake Newell Resort Marina area on the West and South side close to the public beach.    There is a good sized parking lot, lots of grass for rigging and a sandy beach with a fairly firm and gradually deepening bottom. 

All roads to these sites are paved.  Bathrooms are seasonal at both locations and should be in place from May to end of September.  Kiteboarding is becoming popular as well on Lake Newell and tends to happen more around Lake Newell Resort marina area than at Kinbrook Island Provincial Park.  There are also other access to lake areas used by the kiteboarders as well, dependent on wind direction but this is generally known by the 'locals' so checking with them would locate where these areas are.  

Checking with 'Windfinder' , iwindsurf, etc. is a good way to get a feel for wind conditions on Lake Newell.  It may lie on the wind fringes when the south westerly winds are strong  but it makes up when windy by having lovely large waves that are a lot of fun to windsurf in.   Windsurfing season is generally from May to October.  You will need a warmer (4/3mm thick) wetsuit in early or late season sailing and a shorty for the mid season depending on the conditions.  I always wear a life jacket for a couple of reasons and would advise everyone to do the same.  

Larger sails will be suitable for most conditions but there are a fair number of 5 meter days and perhaps a few smaller size sail days in the season.  Sails in the 6, 7 and 8 sq meter range will definitely broaden the number of sailable days.  Wind conditions on most days will vary in strength and direction.