A beloved business on the Alaska Highway is closing its doors.
The Historic Buckinghorse River Lodge will be shuttering as of September 17th. The family-owned business has been operating at Mile 175 of the Alaska Highway for the past 23 years.
Owner Howard Shannon says the lack of traffic has made it impossible to continue. He blames the federal government’s restrictions on oil and natural gas in BC’s north, causing fewer people to come through. He also says tourism traffic during the pandemic was significantly down as well.
The high cost of fuel has also played a large part in the family’s decision to close, since they rely on diesel generators for power.
Despite the sadness that came with the decision, Shannon looks back fondly over his time running the lodge.
“The people that we’ve met over the years from all over the world has just been super,” says Shannon. “The truck drivers that stopped here for years, we enjoyed having their company and talking to them – it was great here up until about six years ago.”
He goes on to say: “We’re going to miss this place big time, it’s been lots of fun here.”
The lodge will be holding a real estate and equipment auction in person and online on September 24th.
