Cambridge Bay (Apr 24/06) - Overlooking the shores of Cambridge Bay, the Arctic Coast Visitor Centre is unusually lively for this time of year.

Thanks to some unlikely volunteer help courtesy of Gary Ramos, the centre has been able to remain open all winter. He is trying to sail his Vancouver-built steel vessel called the Arctic Wanderer around the North Pole using the Northeast and Northwest Passages, but had to stop for the winter here as the ice set in.

"I can't actually work here as I'm from the U.S., so I volunteered to help out," he said. "I'm working for free showers and the centre also has a phone, Internet access and a television, which helps me stay connected."

Having the centre open Monday-Friday this winter in particular has been a real blessing thanks to the number of gatherings Cambridge Bay has hosted. The Nunavut Impact Review Board hearings on Miramar's proposed Hope Bay gold mine, the Kitikmeot Trade Show, the Nunavut Economic Developers Association meeting and the Nunavut Mining Symposium are all attracting many out-of-towners to this Victoria Island community.

"Some months they've only had six people come through the centre," said Ramos. "The first week of February alone we had 27 come to see the displays and purchase some souvenirs."

Helping to drive this are the flyers he's printed up and distributed at locations around the hamlet.

"Even the residents here are surprised when they found out the centre is open this winter," he said.

One tourist who got a chance to tour the collection of art and artifacts from around the Kitikmeot was Carolyn Dunn. In Cambridge Bay for the Miramar hearings from Ottawa, she said she enjoyed her time in the community and was thankful she got a chance to visit the Arctic Coast Visitor Centre.

"I heard from some of my colleagues how amazing this place was," she said. "I really like the sealskin artwork."

For Ramos, the whole experience has been quite surreal given his love of the North.

"I've lived in Alaska for 20 years. That's not the Arctic," he said. "This is the real Arctic and it's beautiful and the people are all so friendly."