Issue link: http://publications.winnipegfreepress.com/i/59721
NOR TH OF 5 3 ° Churchill Northern Studies Centre is an independent, non-profit research station located along the coast of Hudson Bay. Take a nature study tour of the subarctic. See polar bears, beluga whales, wildflowers, and the Northern Lights. Courses are led by qualified instructors and proceeds support research and education in the Canadian sub-arctic. Tours offered. Admission charged. location: Rocket Launch Rd., 24 km/15 mi east of Churchill p: 204-675-2307 w: www.churchillscience.ca The Eskimo Museum has a collection of some of the oldest and finest Inuit carvings and artifacts in the world, dating from Pre-Dorset (1700 BC) through Dorset, Thule and modern Inuit times. Remember the Pre-Dorset and Dorset peoples who lived in this area from 3000 to 1000 B.C. The gift shop specializes in northern books, Canadian Inuit art, unique postcards, art cards, stationery and local wild berry preserves. Open year-round. Groups should make reservations. Donations accepted. p: 204-675-2030 Parks Canada Visitor Centre in Churchill features exhibits about the human and natural history of the area. Learn about the Prince of Wales Fort National Historic Site, York Factory National Historic Site and Wapusk National Park. Enjoy interactive and interpretive programs, DVDs and videos year-round. Admission charged for audio-visual and interpretive programs. location: Churchill Heritage Railway Station p: 204-675-8863 w: www.parkscanada.gc.ca b Across the Churchill River on the west peninsula, lies Prince of Wales Fort National Historic Site of Canada, a huge stone fortress built by the Hudson's Bay Company in the 1700s during the fur trade. It took over 40 years to build this fort- a symbol of the French-English struggle for control of the fur trade. Guides share the story and the architectural components of the fort. Tours offered, tide and weather permitting. Access by boat or helicopter. Fee charged for guided tour. p: 204-675-8863 w: www.parkscanada.gc.ca/ princewalesfort Sloop Cove was a safe harbour and winter haven for Hudson's Bay Co. sloops (boats) during the 18th century. Due to postglacial land uplift, it is now a meadow surrounded by rocks with iron mooring rings. The rocks bear signatures of HBC men including Samuel Hearne- northern explorer and HBC governor. Tour arrangements can be made with private boat tour operators. Access by boat or helicopter. Fee for guided tour. location: 4 km/2.5 mi upriver from Prince of Wales Fort National Historic Site of Canada p: 204-675-8863 w: www.parkscanada.gc.ca/ princewalesfort Town Centre Complex houses a health centre, high school, library, swimming pool, indoor playground, curling rink, theatre, hockey arena, cafeteria, gymnasium and fitness centre. Interior walkways lit by skylights are lined with brightly coloured Inuit wall hangings and prints, and there's a big carved-wood polar bear slide for the kids. p: 204-675-8871 w: www.townofchurchill.ca b Grass River Provincial Park Wapusk National Park of Canada is an immense lowland area of 11,475 km2 south and east of Churchill. Visit the park named with the Cree word for white bear. It's s a vital habitat for polar bears as well as hundreds of thousands of waterfowl and shorebirds that nest along the Hudson Bay coast. The park is located in a remote region with no road or trail access. Visitors can enter the park with a tour operator. location: southeast of Churchill p: 204-675-8863 w: www.parkscanada.gc.ca/wapusk York Factory National Historic Site of Canada features remains of the great Hudson's Bay Company fur trade post including a depot built in 1832- the oldest wooden structure still standing on permafrost. Across Sloop Creek are the ruins of a stone gunpowder magazine and a cemetery with markers dating back to the 1700s. Access is limited to charter planes or canoe down the Hayes River. Weather conditions are unpredictable and can force a longer than anticipated stay. Polar bears have been encountered. Camping is now allowed. Get information on accommodations and safety information. Guided interpretive tours are available in summer. Fee applies for guided tour. location: southeast of Churchill, upstream on the Hayes River p: 204-675-8863 w: www.parkscanada.gc.ca/yorkfactory At Clearwater Lake Provincial Park the water is so clear the bottom is visible at 11 m/35 ft. This is the place to find trophy-size lake trout, northern pike and whitefish. Take a self-guiding trail to "the caves" – huge slabs of rock broken off the dolomite cliffs. Much of the park's 595 sq km area is made up of coniferous forests with many berries and wildflowers. Go fishing, swimming, boating, hiking, lodging and camping. location: 18 km/11 mi north of The Pas at junction of Hwy. 10 and 287 p: 204-945-6784 toll free: 1-800-214-6497 Cranberry Portage and Cranberry Portage Park, the community on the historic portage between Lake Athapapuskow and First Cranberry Lake – which provided Aboriginal people and fur traders access from the Nelson River system to the Saskatchewan River system. See rocky outcrops and scenic landscapes. Enjoy camping, walking trails, the beach, playground and fishing. Water access to First Cranberry Lake permits entry to Grass River Provincial Park. 133