Rivers abounded in the Valley. Every district had its own favorite swimming hole and picnic spot. For some congregations, baptisms were rituals of the rivers. Family outings, church picnics, camping and courting were activities at these well known locations.

With increased use of automobiles and road improvements, people began to go farther to boat, fish and camp. Madge Lake seemed to fit the order, becoming the most popular and accessible lake as early as 1920.

Madge Lake is situated in Saskatchewan, close to the Manitoba border, near the western end of the Duck Mountains. Over the years the lake area has been developed into a versatile, popular resort at the instigation of both Saskatchewan and Manitoba residents.

Madge was named after Margaret Robertson by her fiance Charles Harvey who surveyed the area. Margaret's family and close friends called her "Madge" and so it was this name the young surveyor placed on the map in honor of his love.

Charles Harvey met Madge in Toronto, where he was completing his Engineering Degree. He was assigned by the Federal Government to do the survey in 1904. Though the couple lived for many years at Indian Head Saskatchewan, where they were married in 1905, Madge Harvey never had the opportunity to see the lake and lovely surroundings named for her. Madge celebrated her 100th birthday in Toronto in 1981.

Maps published in 1894 and 1903 showed the lake without a name. Maps of 1887 and 1891 show it named Clearwater but early Kamsack residents cannot recall it ever being known locally by that name. It was known as Island Lake as late as 1908 but in 1909 the Kamsack Times reported the name "Madge" used on a map they had received. This map was published in 1907, the first after Harvey's survey. In 1913, the Kamsack Board of Trade petitioned the Federal Department of the Interior to change it officially to Island Lake as that was the name that was favoured locally. The named remained "Madge" on the map but it was years before local people used the name. No one seemed to know that name until 1961 when the Kamsack Times, and Park Superintendent Gerald Clay, began an investigation. An article in the Times with the heading "Origin of Lake's Name Remains a Mystery" was read by James Harvey Lang of Indian Head, nephew of Charles Harvey, who promptly cleared up the mystery for all concerned.

The lake was used by early Kamsack settlers for ice-fishing with the first development on the south-west corner in 1908, now known as Kamsack Sub-Division. Around that time, people began camping at this area. The twelve mile trip was made over a difficult trail by team and wagon. A number of families built small one bedroom log cabins to be used on these excursions. The first road was built in 1915 and gradually improved so the high-wheeled cars of that time could travel on them. In 1937, groups of volunteers worked four consecutive weekends to clear the bush back from the road. This road was rebuilt in 1938.

In the early 1920's a barely passable trail of about five miles connected the Manitoba municiple road in the south Alpine district with the lake. This trail began on the property of Frank Mayer Sr., crossed a larger meadow and a stream near the Saskatchewan border, then southward to the lake. Impassable for autos when wet, this trail, with a succession of deep ruts and mud holes, continued to get worse with each passing vehicle, the heavy bush preventing drying even on a good sunny day. Creeks had to be crossed and hills climbed. The trail reached the lake on the extreme north end of what is now Benito Sub-Division. Many well planned lake outings were ruined with a sudden rain. Campers then had one of two choices; you left immediately or decided to stay indefinitely.

The location of the Mayer ranch on the trail near the reserve line, provided Frank Sr. a ready-made business, whether he wanted it or not, in assisting people when they ran into difficulties. Mr. Mayer encouraged the construction of a better road but permission was required from the Federal Forestry Department. Mr. Mayer was able to get some support from the Kamsack M. P. to do a little work on the road. A group of interested people from Benito, Durban and Alpine areas formed a company to build a road from the Manitoba side. This was accomplished with $600, mainly supplied by the Forestry Department and much volunteer labour. An additional $200 was required to cut down one very steep hill to make it passable for cars.

Mayer was hired to do the fixing on the road when there was problems with it. In fact, sometimes he was on call twenty-four hours a day.

Around 1920 was the time when people began visiting the Benito Sub-Division. The first cottage was owned by Bob McLennan of Swan River in 1922 when he bought a small cabin formerly owned by a trapper. By 1929 there were a half-dozen cabins at Benito Beach.

Prior to 1930, Natural Resourses were administered by the Federal Government at which time transfer was made to the provinces. In 1913, a survey was completed of the Kamsack Sub-Division though camping and cottage building had already commenced. Permits were $5.00 a year. By 1923-24, approximately thirty-five cottages had been constructed.

The Kamsack Beach Division was united to the Benito Division when a road was constructed in 1930-31. About a four to five mile distance, it proved a difficult road to construct and use. However crooked and narrow, it did serve the purpose of uniting the two areas and allowing the people of the Benito side to tour the lake and travel to Kamsack if they wished.

In 1933, the highway connecting Swan River Valley to Roblin was completed over the mountain. The Saskatchewan residents busied themselves building an extention of the road along the beach to connect with this new highway in Manitoba. It was completed in 1934.

Over the years, youth groups used these beach areas at Madge for summer camps. The Trail Rangers, Canadian Girls In Training, Boy Scouts, Girl Guides, Tuxis Boys and other church organizations were some that spent idylic days at Madge Lake.

There was a story of a Girl Guide tent raid by a mother bear and her two cubs, who went in the supply tent, sitting on the eggs, pawing through butter, bread and meat, ignoring all efforts to get rid of them. The guides decided to leave and everyone got scared off. Eventually, bears became a real hazard to campers and measures had to be taken.

In the thirties, excursion boats made their way to the lake. George Sankie of Benito operated the "Wereoff" on weekends from a dock on Benito Beach. It could take thirty people on tours around the lake. "Old Chum" was his smaller boat carrying five people for fishing trips and running errands.

By 1932 a small store had been added by Mr. Carlson to the boat business at Benito Beach. Carlson kept a cow to supply milk for his family and to sell to campers and cottagers. In 1936, the business was sold to Bob McBride from Roblin who further developed the place by clearing an area for camping and a ball camp. The store site became the "overflow" camp grounds, but is not used for anything now.

Two large boats operated from Kamsack Beach. The "Maid of the Mist", owned and operated by George Muir of Togo, gave two and a half hour tours of the lake for fifty cents. Bill Hunter and Reg Smith built the "Lady of the Lake" and also was used for touring.

These boats were very popular and the only means of getting to other beaches before the road connecting them was constructed. The eight horse-powered, inboard motors obviously were not very fast since it took two and a half hours to tour the lake.

One interesting and best remembered attractions was the store and dance pavilion built by W. J. Johnson and his wife Stoney at the Kamsack Sub-Division, in 1932. Dances were held twice weekly and some times more often. An orchestra, hired for the summer, lived in a tent at the back of the building. Tunes were practiced during the day, filling the campground with music.

The living quarters for the owner, a store and cafe were attached to the pavilion down one side, with drop shutters and screens separating these from the dance area. People would drop in for ice cream or other treats on dance nights just to listen to the music and watch the dancers.

Another attraction of the thirties was Smith's Zoo located near the present garbage yard on Batka Lake Road. A small fee was charged to see the well-cared for animals. Mr. Smith is credited with bringing the first cow moose into the park, as a zoo attraction. During the Second World War the zoo was faded out of existence.

In the depression years, the provincial government set up a number of work projects at Madge Lake. In 1931, an order-in-council had created Duck Mountain Provincial Park, making it the ninety-fourth park. Mr. C. T. Dell was Forest Ranger at that time. One of the first projects was to construct a bunk house where the men could live while on these jobs. It was a long, log building of one large room fitted with bunks, built near the water's edge at the site of what today is Ministik Beach. Later on it was divided into single rooms which were rented out and the building became known as " The Lodge". A large government boathouse of logs and a floating pier were constructed at Ranger Bay as another work project. This pier and boat house became useless when the level of the lake dropped in 1948, leaving them on dry land. Four or five small log cabins were constructed in 1933-34 and are still in use today at Ministik Beach. One of the major projects of these years was the construrction of the road linking up to the Manitoba highway in 1934.

As Ministik developed in the thirties and forties, more and more people coming to the lake for the day began to shift their attention and business to this particular area. The opening of The Lodge and a few rental cabins was the first stage. In 1932, a small building of rough lumber had also been built - the first Ministik Inn, still used as late as 1946. Improving on this, the department of Natural Resourses built a more modern, larger building around 1947-48 where boat and cabin rentals were handled, meals and lunches served and a small store operated until destroyed by the fire in 1957. The road from Kamsack Beach ran quite close to the beach creating a great mix-up of trafic and people on a busy day. When the new Chalet was built in 1957, the problem was eliminated.

The present eighteen-hole golf course was started in 1963 using part of five old fairways. Up to three thousand people can find a place on Ministik Beach today. Pickeral Point campground, developed under Mr. Clay, is pack the summer through.

Madge Lake has always been a popular fishing spot. From 1924-1960, one million pickerel were stocked in the lake each year. Since 1961, mainly Northern Pike and Kokanee have been placed. In 1932, Saskatchewan authorities felt Manitoba cottage owners and fishermen should help pay for the efforts made at re-stocking the lake. Rates were increased accordingly, inmmediatly bringing a strong objection by the Swan River Board of Trade suggesting that increase was unjustified due to the road conditions and that it was advisable to go to Clear Lake for that reason, even if the distance was much greater.

For people of the Valley who camp and picnic in other places, Madge is still their favorite place.