One of the unsung heroes of the Northwest is in fact the Bob Quinn Lake Airport, a little recognized piece of land that has opened the gateway to the north since it opened almost 30 years ago.
“It’s a bit of an unsung piece of infrastructure in the Northwest,” said Bill Hesse, a director on the Bob Quinn Airport Society, who also works for Northern Thunderbird Air.
The society recently held an open house in Smithers, a means to raise awareness and participation in the airstrip’s future.
How much use the airport gets is all dependent on what’s happening. Hesse said that when Eskay Creek had their mine operating up there, the company would take excellent care of the strip.
Once they closed shop, however, something else had to be worked out to keep the place in good repair.
“That’s why for years you probably didn’t hear much about it because Eskay was looking after [it] and working closely with Keith [Routley, airport society member] to make sure that it ran smoothly.”
One of the largest struggles for the society has been keeping a good enough cash flow to maintain the place, particularly for paying for the insurance.
“It’s not a cash cow, that’s for sure,” said Hesse.
NT Air, he said, have always contributed to the airstrip because the company knows its importance to their own operation.
“We want to make sure that everything’s there that needs to be there for when the boom cycles happen,” he said. He added, “You can’t beat them off with a stick fast enough when there’s a Galore Creek going on.”
Thanks to the contract for highway maintenance in the area, the strip does get plowed four times a month.
Through their recent open house they were looking to raise awareness and an interest in the society.
“It’s just a very key piece of infrastructure that’s there and ready to go. It’s well worth being a part of.”
Information on the society can be found by calling society director Keith Routley at 250-884-4151.