‘Shocked and saddened’: Pinaus Lake Resort closed over landslide concerns

Landslide concerns have forced Pinaus Lake Resort near Falkland to close indefinitely — and maybe forever.

The resort has been a popular destination for anglers for decades, but now may have hosted its last guest.

The province ended the resort’s lease for safety reasons; land in the area is slowly moving and threatening the property.

“We have what is called soil creep where the hillside is moving and the Pinaus Lake Resort is at the bottom of the hillside,” said Andy Oetter, director of resource authorizations for B.C.’s Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations.

“If it moved catastrophically, you would have a potential number of people right at the base of the slope.”

Resort operators Arvid and Audrey Hoglund said they were “shocked and saddened” by the news, in a Facebook post.

The closure was a major blow to the couple, now in their late seventies, who have owned the resort for more than three decades.

“The big impact on them is they have no livelihood anymore and it is indefinite. They have no idea if the resort will ever open again,” said Rene Talbot, regional district director for the area where the resort is located.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "The big impact on them is they have no livelihood anymore and it is indefinite. They have no idea if the resort will ever open again," said Rene Talbot, regional district director for the area where the resort is located.

It’s also bad news for other local businesses in Falkland who used to see business from anglers who were headed to the resort.

A Go Fund Me account is helping raise emergency transition money for Audrey and Arvid Hogland, who have relocated to Armstrong while they attempt to sell their belongings.

“It is going to be a big loss,” said Lottie Kozak, who operates a fly tying shop.

Some are concerned that logging may have played a role in the instability.

“It’s probably a combination of many things: soils, type of rock and logging probably has a big impact on it too and there has been a lot of logging up there,” said Talbot.

However, the province said the type of soil found in the area, not logging, is likely creating the problems.

“It looks like there are huge areas of this soil creep in the area which is indicative of an underlying deposit of an unstable soil,” said Oetter.

Provincial officials don’t expect the situation to change any time soon, meaning the quiet retreat may have seen its last visitor.