Dave Sullivan
Northern News Services

Nahanni Park (Aug10/01) - Telling visitors from far-off lands about her aboriginal heritage is a wonderful experience, said Julia Tsetso-Perron.

It turns out that tourists are just as interested in hearing about how her grandparents and generations before them constantly trekked throughout the Nahanni watershed, hunting and trapping.

Tsetso-Perron and Sachey Antoine rotate shifts in Nahanni Park at Virginia Falls, where all 800 or so visitors pass through each year.

They are a way for the park to provide a human touch. Both are students in Alberta. Tsetso-Perron is in fine arts specializing in pottery and Sachey studies biology.

The aboriginal heritage program was started last year as an experiment, says heritage officer Sophie Borcoman. It gives students excellent opportunities.

It's so successful that officials decided to build them a cedar cabin, so they don't use up a campground spot.

Built on moss, the 16-by-24-foot cabin is set back from the riverbank 200 metres, out of sight.

Senior warden Carl Lafferty says people were being missed at the falls who have questions. Answering them is part of the students' jobs, he said.

"A lot of groups could benefit from having more information on safety," he said.