A $500 reward is being offered for information leading to the identification of the persons responsible for defacing and removing directional signs for the new Wormy Lake recreational site in Halfmoon Bay.
“Whether it’s someone who doesn’t want people to go to Wormy Lake, we don’t know,” said Dave Lasser, operations manager for the Sunshine Coast Community Forest (SCCF), which is offering the reward along with the Sunshine Coast Trails Society.
In recent weeks, SCCF installed three directional signs leading to the lake that were mounted on metal poles with buried concrete bases, Lasser said.
“Two of those went missing. The third one was painted with a swastika on it. We were able to remove the paint, but it was since hit with three shotgun blasts Sunday night or early Monday morning,” he said.
As well, trail signs installed over the summer by the Trails Society “were ripped out of the ground and thrown into the bush.”
The incidents have been reported to the Sunshine Coast RCMP and the Conservation Officer Service.
The two directional signs that were removed, each worth $500, had been situated on the Halfmoon-Carlson forest service road and at the base of the Mine Road.
The Wormy Lake site is developing into a highly attractive recreational area – and that could be the motive behind the vandalism, Lasser suggested.
“We’ve put some really nice trails in there with the Trails Society. Pure speculation: maybe some people just want it for themselves.”
He added that he believes the vandalism is the work of adults. “It’s not kids on mountain bikes doing it.”
In a separate issue, some visitors at the site have ruined the designated fire pit by building very large bonfires and have also left heaps of trash behind.
“The Wormy Lake recreational site has been created by a group of hard-working volunteers for the benefit of all to enjoy,” SCCF said this week in a public notice. “Users are urged to use and enjoy the site but to leave it as good condition or better than they found it.”
Tips can be reported to [email protected] or 604-885-7809.
