Beginning
Aboriginal History
The Fur Trade
Exploration
The Gold Rush
The Waterways
Aviation History
Medical History
Education
Gold Mines
Highway 105
Red Lake
Balmertown
Ear Falls
Other Communities
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A Visitor's Guide to the Red Lake/Ear Falls District
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The Opening of Highway 105

In 1946, Highway 105 was built, linking Red Lake to the Trans-Canada Highway.  Penetrating virgin country, the road unveiled Canada's newest frontier for tourists.

For the first 15 years, the road was so rough that it took over seven hours to get from Red Lake to Vermilion Bay.  Motorists often had to get out of their cars to move boulders out of the way, or to push each other's cars out of snow drifts.  Today this scenic drive only takes two hours.

The opening of the road meant that Red Lake no longer needed to rely strictly on the gold mines to support the economy.  Tourist camps sprung up all over the north to feed the unsatiable appetite for big fish.  Today, with over 50 tourist based businesses in the area, tourism remains one of Red Lake and Ear Falls' main industries.



Downtown Red Lake 1948.  With seven gold mines in full production, Red Lake was booming.

Post cards like this one, featuring Lesia Dayneka, advertised Red Lake's emerging tourist industry to the outside world (1948).  Mining pioneer Charlie Peterson with a 54 lb. lake trout caught at Trout Lake in 1953.


The opening of the first airport was another new development.    An airstrip was bulldozed out of the bush near Cochenour, and covered with gravel.  With a Quonset hut as a waiting room, Red Lake now had a primitive, but functional airport. 


The opening of the road and the airport meant that the old waterway from Hudson to Red Lake would no longer be needed.  This would change life in Red Lake forever.

Deneen Robertson, showing off her catch of the day.


 Pristine wilderness and a rich mining heritage draw visitors from Canada and abroad.
 


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The Red Lake Regional Heritage Centre is a charitable organization, funded by the Municipality of Red Lake and the Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Recreation.   Reg # 87315 2714 RR001