SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Most stores may have been closed for Victoria Day on Monday, but that didn't stop residents from hunting for the best bargains in town.

Gary Football shows off one of his many finds at the dump on Monday. Football drove all the way from Bechoko to look for salvageable items. - Cody Punter/NNSL photo

Hundreds of people flocked to the dump to take advantage of amnesty week on their days off work, with an endless line of traffic going in and out of its gates from open until close.

"I haven't had the chance to sit down all day," said the gate attendant when asked about how busy the solid waste facility had been.

Travis Mercredi, who made several trips to the dump on Monday, said some people parked their cars at the salvage area waiting for others to drop off items, which ranged from furniture and sports equipment to old barbecues and even a row boat.

He said a stereo system a friend of his was getting rid of didn't even have the time to hit the ground before it was reclaimed by an eager salvager.

Garry Football said he made the trip all the way from Behchoko to look for things that he could salvage after hearing an announcement on the radio on Monday morning.

"When I heard it was amnesty (week), we decided to drive down (to Yellowknife)," he said.

Football said he was able to rescue several items from the salvage area, including a weight bench and a heavy duty lifejacket. He was still hunting for stuff when Yellowknifer left.

"One man's garbage is another man's treasure," said Football.

Long-time salvager Judy Mah only picked up a couple of National Geographic magazines Monday. However, she said she has had lots of great finds at the dump in the past.

"It's a wonderful resource," she said.

While there were certainly plenty of people looking for that hidden treasure, there was also no shortage of people taking advantage of the $10 tipping fee for residential waste being lifted until the end of the week.

Kevin Carr is in the process of moving. He said he had already made several trips to the dump to get rid of unwanted clutter by Monday afternoon and planned to make several more later in the week.

"It should be amnesty week every week, but they can't do that. They have to pay for (the dump) somehow," he said.

The city offers residents the chance to drop off garbage for free three times a year - for one week in the fall, the two days following Christmas and once again for a week in the spring.

This past weekend, the city also hosted its first ever curbside giveaway, where residents were encouraged to put unwanted items that were in good condition at the curb so they could be picked up by salvagers without them having to make the trip to the dump.

Amnesty week continues until Friday.

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