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New den for polar bear Visitors centre receives special delivery
Daniel Campbell
Northern News Services
Friday, September 6, 2013
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
After 20 years of watching over the entrance of the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre, followed by 10 years in storage, a taxidermied polar bear got to take a stroll in the fresh air on Sept. 3 as it was transported to its new home in the Northern Frontier Visitors Centre.
The Northern Frontier Visitors Centre's new polar bear makes its way out of the back of a pickup truck on Sept. 3 with some help from Elijah Forget, senior tourism counsellor, left, and John Lodge, director of Visual Effects Gallery. - Laura Busch/NNSL photo
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Tracy Therrien, general manager of the visitors centre, was thrilled about the new addition.
"He absolutely goes with our theme of hands-on involvement with the centre, being dog friendly, kid friendly – let the children run around . It's just the perfect photo opportunity for people to get up close to a bear. And, now, when people say, 'Can we see polar bears in Yellowknife?' we can say, 'Yes' – and we get asked that a lot," she said.
The bear was transported by pickup truck from the museum to the visitors centre on Tuesday.
Therrien said the plan for the bear is to allow visitors to get close to it for photos. Centre staff might also have traditional parkas available for tourists to use to take a more realistic Northern photo – from the comfort of the heated centre.
Staff at the heritage centre decided to donate the bear because it has been sitting in storage for about 10 years, said Barb Cameron, director at the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre.
"I, for one, think change is good although some people will miss the bear," she said.
The male bear was 10 years old and weighed an estimated 1,000 to 1,100 pounds when it was brought down by David Ooingoot near Resolute Bay in 1982. From 1983 to 2003, it sat in the entrance lobby of the visitors centre. However, after the creation of Nunavut in 1999, museum staff have been working to create more NWT-specific wildlife and cultural displays, said Cameron.
"In my view, the bear is not the most appropriate symbol to represent the NWT," she said.
Plus, a new bear is now on display at the heritage centre, although the exhibit has yet to have its grand opening. That bear is in a more natural pose – eating the remains of a successful seal hunt while an Arctic fox looks for scraps behind it.
The museum has been undergoing major renovations and updates since about 2008.
"We want people to see what our culture is today. It's alive and well," said Cameron.
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