There are no roads going into the MacIntrye Lake Lodge site, no lumber yards close at hand, and absolutely no way to get supplies into the camp after ice out, except by air. In order to ensure construction on the lodge would begin on schedule, the first priority was to get all materials and supplies to the site by hauling it in over the ice and through the bush during the winter.
All building materials were trucked north to a drop-off point. From here, the daunting task remained of moving tons of materials the many miles to the home of the new lodge. The original plan was to tow everything in on sleds behind snowmobiles, however, Mother Nature had plans of her own. The winter of 2004/2005 saw extraordinary amounts of snow, which insulated ice on the lakes, producing a layer of slush. This made travel very difficult, with the snow machines often sinking in the snow or becoming mired down in slush.
The only answer was to find an alternative to the snowmobile, something with superior towing power and the ability to handle all types od terrain and snow conditions. Gerry Bolger searched high and wide, finally locating the almighty "Sno-Cat" in British Columbia, Canada. It was purchased and promptly trucked to Saskatchewan.
The long, tedious process began. Each semi-truck load had to be unloaded by hand. The sleds were loaded, and the long journey through bush and over lakes was undertaken.
After many long, hard hours and several trips, all materials had been delivered to the future home of MacIntyre Lake Lodge.
As spring arrives in northern Saskatchewan, we are currently awaiting for the large snow pack to melt and the ground to thaw. As the past few weeks have seen very mild weather, we expect construction to begin very soon.
As things progress, we will be posting updates on this page. Please check back for more progress reports. |
