Big Lake Chamber of Commerce

Member Spotlight: Burkeshore Marina

Big Lake has roughly 50 miles of shoreline, several islands, and a summer boat count that reflects its old reputation as Anchorage’s playground. Burkeshore Marina has served that traffic for more than 60 years. The docks at 3610 N. Burkeshore Drive predate most other businesses on the lake, which makes the marina one of the longest tenured names among Big Lake chamber members.

Six decades on the water

Sixty years of repeat business in a seasonal town takes some explaining. Part of the answer is generational. A family that moored a wooden runabout here in the 1960s may well have grandchildren tying up at the same docks this summer. The operation has expanded well past slips and gas over those decades. Boat sales and service grew into departments of their own, winter storage followed, and the marina store sells everything a boater forgets on the way out the door. The freezer case of ice cream and slushies gets its own line of customers on a July afternoon.

Services at the marina

The current lineup covers most of what a boat owner needs between launch and freeze-up:

Moorage: seasonal slips on the lake

Fuel: available at the marina for boats on the water

Service: engine work, general boat repair, and fiberglass repair

Storage: winter boat storage between seasons

Sales: new and used boats, plus docks and boat lifts

Parts and supplies: marine hardware, accessories, and snacks at the store

Dock and boat lift sales deserve a note of their own. Lakefront owners around Big Lake maintain hundreds of private docks, and the marina supplies and services that market locally instead of leaving it to Anchorage dealers. Slip inquiries belong in early spring, because demand for seasonal moorage rises as soon as the ice goes out and waiting until June narrows the options.

Rentals for visitors

Big Lake Boat Rentals operates from the marina property, so a visitor without a trailer still gets on the water. Pontoons do most of the rental business, since they hold a family plus coolers and fishing gear. Personal watercraft go out fast on hot weekends. The kayaks and paddleboards belong to the quiet-water crowd, and the calmest window is a weekday morning before the wakes build. Kids ask for the tow tubes without any prompting.

A summer weekend without a reservation usually ends in a wait at the counter. Holiday weekends around the Fourth of July book out first, and the season in Southcentral is short enough that few dates go unclaimed.

Buying a boat close to home

The sales side lists new and used boats, and that inventory reaches buyers statewide through the national listing sites. The argument for purchasing locally is short. Anchorage may beat the sticker price by a little. Burkeshore services and stores what it sells, and somebody who knows the boat answers the phone in May when a motor rattles on the first launch of the season. First-time buyers get one more advantage: the used hull is right there for an in-person inspection, and moorage can be arranged in the same conversation.

The marina in winter

Big Lake does not close in October. Once the ice thickens, snowmachines cross the same water people boated in July, ice fishing holes appear by the hundred, and some of the community’s winter events take place on the ice. The marina spends those months on storage and service work, which is exactly when a boat owner should schedule repairs. A February appointment costs the same as a June one and skips the queue that forms the week before Memorial Day.

The local economy depends on recreation, and the chamber’s interest in the marina follows from that. Visitors who launch or rent at Burkeshore buy fuel on Big Lake Road, eat at local restaurants, and book nearby lodging. One busy Saturday at the docks spreads spending across a dozen other local businesses in Big Lake before the sun goes down, which in June takes a while.

Contact

The docks are on the north shore at 3610 N. Burkeshore Drive, Big Lake, AK 99652. Service appointments and rental days can shift, so a quick call to 907-892-6300 beforehand will confirm the schedule. Inventory listings and seasonal announcements appear at burkeshoremarina.com. Visitors are welcome in any month.