New store will have Mountain appeal

The visual centerpiece of the new Cabela’s store in Post Falls will be a 28-foot tall indoor mountain, complete with a rushing stream and waterfall.

It’s the creation of a Rathdrum firm that specializes in massive concrete outcroppings that mimic the look and feel of real rock. The mountain is the fourth such project that Lakeland Co. has built for Cabela’s, adding to a resume that also includes natural-looking habitat for zoo exhibits, casino décor based on ancient temple ruins and lavish rock waterfalls for trophy homes.

“Someone will come to us and say, ‘I want this to look like the inside of a mine, or an ancient ruin,’” said David Long, founder and president of the 14-year-old firm. “One client wanted a $2.5 million waterfall in his front yard, just for his own enjoyment.”

Two years ago, Lakeland Co. sent a marketing brochure to Cabela’s headquarters in Sidney, Neb. After a presentation to company officials, Long won contracts to build mountains for stores in Boise and St. Louis.

A “Conservation Mountain,” decked out with mounts of North American wildlife, is a standard feature in Cabela’s stores. Lakeland Co. uses concrete panels reinforced with Fiberglas to build the 4,000-square foot mountains, which are held up with an internal steel support structure.

Fake rocks in the mountains mimic the “gray granite” of the Northern Rockies to deeply pitted tundra stone, Long said.

He declined to disclose the amount of the Cabela’s contracts, but said they range from six to seven figures, depending on the amount of work required. Lakeland Co. actually built two mountains for the St. Louis store.

The smaller Cabela’s in Post Falls has just has one mountain, but Lakeland Co. also built the façade surrounding the aquariums and wrapped the store’s support beams in mock wood – complete with grain and knots – so it looks like giant logs are holding up the roof.