Great Slave Lake Lodge mentioned Artillery Lake in the newsletter, and that came to the attention of Chief Archie Catholique of the Lutsel K'e Dene First Nation.

Catholique says the lodge was advertising fly-in fishing on Artillery Lake.

The chief says the lake is an area of traditional use and spiritual significance for his band, and he wants Great Slave Lake Lodge owner Chummy Plummer to consult with the band on any activity there.

"We've not been informed by Mr. Plummer that he's going to do fishing on that lake," Catholique says.

"Anyone who's going to work on traditional Akaitcho territory, they have to come and talk to the leadership and the elders," he says, adding the Akaitcho would have to licence such activity.

However, Plummer says his lodge, which is located at Taltheilei Narrows on the north side of Great Slave Lake, does not offer organized fishing trips to Artillery Lake.

He explains some guests at the lodge occasionally hire an aircraft to visit Artillery Lake, east of Great Slave Lake. They want to experience the barrenlands, look at the falls, see muskox and sometimes fish.

Plummer says such visits have been going on for 50 years and might only happen two or three times a year.

He notes there was only one day trip to the lake last year.

Speaking from Winnipeg, Plummer says residents of Lutsel K'e always knew of the activity. "Except the younger guys, they don't know that."

The lodge owner says he didn't see the newsletter before it was issued, explaining it incorrectly used the word "new" when referring to access to Artillery Lake. "This isn't new."

Artillery Lake is the second matter of contention to arise between the lodge and the Lutsel K'e Band. In late 2001, the band accused the lodge of bulldozing gravesites for an airstrip in the 1980s.

The lodge denies it ever disturbed graves.

Last year, ground-penetrating radar tests commissioned by DIAND found no graves under the runway.

However, Catholique doesn't think the testing was accurate. "So we're going to sit down and talk about it and ask questions."

A meeting will be held with DIAND on Jan. 28.