Vancouver 2010 Olympics Events: Northern House, NWT

Northern House for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics in British Columbia, Canada.

Things are pretty cool at the Northern House, the resource for all things northern Canada during the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. I went to the media reception last evening to check out what the NWT (Northwest Territories) folks were doing to lure travellers to the Arctic.

aurora borealis
International visitors seem to be most fascinated with the aurora borealis (northern lights) and Don Martin is at the northern house all day today revealing the basics about these phenomenal dancing lights.

Nahanni National Park

Northern House in Vancouver, BC: Arts & Culture are an important part of the economy in the north.

I was particularly impressed by the photos and videos from Nahanni National Park. Ted Grant told us that they “get 700-800 visitors [to the park] a year, so there’s lots of room if you want to come up!” The park spans 4,766 square km…

Olympic Contests
Of course, I must also tell you about the contests. Visit the northern house and you can win a 3.8 Troy oz. Gold nugget from the Yukon (worth $9,000 CDN); a .59 carat Government Certified Canadian Diamond™ (valued at $8,000 CDN); the Polar Bear Diamond™, cut from the original diamond weighing 1.31 carats; and a tapestry from Nunavut called QAQQILUTUK (CAMP SITE) valued at $5,000 CDN. How’s that for a northern welcome?

Northern House

Make an Inukshuk at the Northern House for the Vancouver 2010 Olympics in BC, Canada.

There are activities almost all day, everyday during the Olympics. Today, Mikey McBride of the TV show Ice Pilots NWT is in the house signing autographs and answering questions about flying World War II planes in the harsh conditions of the north. James Pugsley of Astronomy North is explaining the fascinating aurora borealis (northern lights) phenomenon, and Samantha Stuart is talking about summer activities in the Northwest Territories.  

Check out the schedule of events at the Northern House website and follow them on Twitter for all the latest updates.

Tags: arctic, aurora borealis, canada, Events, Ice Pilots NWT, Mikey McBride, Nahanni National Park, Northern House, northern lights, Northwest Territories, NWT, Olympic Contests, Vancouver 2010 Olympics