Inuvik (May 07/04) - Concerts, song contests, a music festival and Dempster Highway publications.

It's all happening in Inuvik in preparation for the Dempster Highway's 25th Anniversary.

On June 23, Inuvik will host a feast and live entertainment courtesy of the department of Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development.

"The idea is to attract people taking in the Arctic Circle Solstice Party to come here," said Judith Venaas, regional tourism operator for RWED. "A lot come as far as the Arctic Circle then turn around. We want them to continue up the highway."

RWED is also planning to host another such event Aug. 21 to complement the ribbon cutting ceremony on Aug. 18 -- the Dempster's official opening day 25 years ago.

Then, a week later, Inuvik will host its first "End of the Road Music Festival." Anybody looking to help out can contact Kim Bitensky at the town office.

And for those creative individuals out there with a Dempster Highway story all your own, a book project is on the go, collecting tales about the highway from individuals around the region.

According to one of the project's organizers, Mike Mulherin, anything goes.

"We're looking for poetry, songs, stories and it's OK if you are not a writer. If you've got a story to tell, we'd be pleased to do an interview," he said. "So far the response has been excellent, but we need a little more time."

Mulherin says the deadline for submissions to the Dempster Highway book has been extended to May 21.

Opened in 1979, the Dempster Highway was named for Sgt. WJD Dempster of the Northwest Mounted Police who, in the winter of 1911, was sent to search for the "Lost Patrol."

Construction was originally started under Canada's "Roads to Resources" program in the late 1950s. However, only 117km were completed at that time. In the 1970s, work began to complete the highway when an overland supply route to Inuvik was necessary to serve large-scale oil exploration taking place in the Beaufort Sea.