YELLOWKNIFE - Blachford Lake Lodge and Conference Resort just got some major press.

The eight-year-old getaway destination has been hailed in the April edition of National Geographic Traveler as one of 15 Canadian hotels worth checking into.

Dany Leclerc is manager of Blachford Lake Lodge and Conference resort. The lodge is listed in April's National Geographic Traveler magazine as one of 15 Canadian hotels worth a visit. - Jennifer Geens/NNSL photo

The hotels that made the list were selected for their location-inspired architecture, ambience, amenities and eco-stewardship.

"It's quite a sign of recognition," said Mike Freeland, owner of the lodge. "I sent a copy on to the staff this past weekend so they could hear the news."

The list was compiled after the magazine put out a call for nominations to travel experts and seasoned travellers. An extensive questionnaire was sent to Freeland, but staff from National Geographic had actually visited the lodge already in 2001, for a story on aurora borealis viewing.

Located on the west end of Blachford Lake, the resort rests on a Precambrian rock cliff high up above the lake, its dining room offering panoramic views of ski-planes landing on the ice.

The setting of the lodge is the key to its success, according to manager Dany Leclerc, who personally greets guests when they arrive on the lake by riding down on a snowmobile affixed with a luggage trailer.

"We were in this magazine because of our relationship to nature," he said.

"We have that certain something - that kind of pinkish hue, from the rock - that you can't get in the city."

Their attention to detail also helps, he added.

"Our motto is to always have bread going out of the oven every time a plane comes in. So when the customer gets here, the first thing they notice is that beautiful smell.

"It's all about the details here. We don't take shortcuts."

Leclerc is a master chef who opened the kitchen at the Ekati Diamond Mine, then began as the lodge's chef eight years ago. When he became manager, he passed his chef's hat to Virgile Lafreniere, who doubles as chef and baker.

When he's not whipping up massive servings of crème brule or Arctic char with white wine and dillweed sauce, Lafreniere makes the most of the lodge's surroundings.

"I love having all this access to nature," he said. "It reminds me of growing up in Lac du lou, a small town near Quebec City. The weather is similar, but of course it's colder here."

The lodge's position as an ideal viewing spot for the northern lights is what drew Dan Schnick of Romania to Blachford. Schnick, who owns a magazine on trucking back home, had never seen the northern lights.

Last Saturday night he got his chance.

Armed with a massive tripod to stabilize his camera, Schnick watched from a top floor balcony as intense green lights moved swiftly across the sky.

Meanwhile, braver guests took in the aurora from the lodge's outdoor hot tub, their hair freezing within seconds.

"I'm glad I came," said Schnick afterwards, beaming.

While the lodge offers plenty of delights, it does not come without a heavy dose of work, said Leclerc.

"In winter it is a difficult place to manage mainly because of the cold. The place has to still run, but the cold snaps can be there for two weeks," he said.

"Things snap, things break. And staff get to work long hours, because we have to put three times the amount of work normally required for a task."

For guest Russ Head of Iqaluit, it was his first time at a lodge. He said he especially appreciated the resort's environmentally safe practices, such as using solar power.

"That's the first time I've heard of a compost toilet," said Head, after Leclerc gave his guests an orientation on the lodge, including an explanation of how the lodge composts waste from its non-flush toilet and reuses it to grow things like flowers.

Head was at Blachford with his girlfriend, Sara Kuniloiufee of Qikitarjuaq, who won her stay at the lodge through a Valentine's Day radio contest.

It was only when she got to the lodge that she heard there was a fishing derby going on that weekend.

"It's my first derby in Yellowknife," she said, clutching a rod over her fishing hole. "I'm hoping I win today."

For more on the Blachford Lake fishing derby, check out Friday's Yellowknifer.