seven wonder of canada

   Number 2     Dinosaur Provincial Park
                        Dinosaur Provincial Park is a World Heritage Site located about two hours drive east of Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
                                    The park is situated in the valley of the Red Deer River, which is noted for its striking badland topography. It is well
                                    known for being one of the greatest dinosaur fossil beds in the world. Thirty-nine dinosaur species have been
                                    discovered here and more than 500 specimens have been removed and exhibited in museums across the globe.

                                    Hudson Bay is a large relatively shallow body of water in northeastern Canada. It drains a very large area that includes
                                    parts of Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Alberta, most of Manitoba, parts of North Dakota and Minnesota and the
                                    southeastern area of Nunavut. A smaller offshoot of the bay, James Bay lies to the south. The IHO lists Hudson Bay as
                                    part of the Artic Ocean. On the east it is connected with the Atlantic Ocean by Hudson Strait and on the north with the
                                    rest of the Artic Ocean by Foxe Basin.

                                     Draped like a green scarf across the shoulders of North America, the boreal or "northern" forest is Canada's largest
                                     biome or environmental community. It occupies 35% of the total Canadian land area and 77% of Canada's total forest
                                     land, stretching between northern tundra and southern grassland and mixed hardwood trees. The boreal forest's animals,
                                     plants and products affect each Canadian every day, from paper products, to the jack pine railway ties, through to the air
                                     we breathe. This northern forest, named after Boreas, the Greek god of the North Wind, is an inevitable and unavoidable
                                     part of who we are.

                                     Starting in the Yukon Territory, the boreal forest forms a band almost 1000 kilometers wide sweeping southeast to
                                     Newfoundland and Labrador. To its north is the tree line and beyond that the tundra of the arctic. To its south, the boreal
                                     forest is bordered by the sub alpine and montane forests of British Columbia, the grasslands of the Prairie Provinces,
                                     and the Great Lakes - St. Lawrence forests of Ontario and Quebec.

                                      The boreal forest is an integral part of our economy, history, culture and natural environment. It gives birth to new life
                                      through its diverse ecosystems and helps to sustain our lives through the renewal of the air above and soil below. This vast
                                      body of land provides the lakes, streams and rivers that act as the veins and arteries of so much of our country. It is also
                                      an important source of forest products, and, thereby, a significant part of the economic base of Canada.

     Number 5    The Great Lakes

                                     The Great Lakes -- Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario -- and their connecting channels form the largest fresh
                                     surface water system on earth. If you stood on the moon, you could see the lakes and recognize the familiar wolf head
                                     shape of Lake Superior, or the mitten bounded by lakes Michigan, Huron and Erie. Covering more than 94,000 square
                                     miles and draining more than twice as much land, these Freshwater Seas hold an estimated 6 quadrillion gallons of water,
                                     about one-fifth of the world's fresh surface water supply and nine-tenths of the U.S. supply. Spread evenly across the
                                     contiguous 48 states, the lakes' water would be about 9.5 feet deep.

                                     The channels that connect the Great Lakes are an important part of the system. The St. Marys River is the northernmost
                                     of these, a 60-mile waterway flowing from Lake Superior down to Lake Huron. At the St. Marys rapids, the Soo Locks
                                     bypass the rough waters, providing safe transport for ships. The St. Clair and Detroit rivers, and Lake St. Clair between
                                     them, form an 89-mile long channel connecting Lake Huron with Lake Erie. The 35-mile Niagara River links lakes Erie
                                     and Ontario, and sends approximately 50,000 to 100,000 cubic feet of water per second over Niagara Falls; the
                                     manmade Welland Canal also links the two lakes, providing a detour around the falls. From Lake Ontario, the water from
                                     the Great Lakes flows through the St. Lawrence River all the way to the Atlantic Ocean, about 1,000 miles away.

                                     This system greatly affects our way of life, as well as all aspects of the natural environment, from weather and climate, to
                                     wildlife and habitat. Yet for all their size and power, the Great Lakes are fragile. In the past, this fragile nature wasn't
                                     recognized, and the lakes were mistreated for economic gain, placing the ecosystem under tremendous stress from our
                                     activities. Today, we understand that our health and our children's inheritance depend on our collective efforts to wisely
                                     manage our complex ecosystem.

   Number 6     Niagara Falls

                        Niagara Falls are a set of massive waterfalls located on the Niagara River in eastern North Ameica, on the border between
                                    Ontario, Canada and New York state. Niagara Falls comprises three separate waterfalls (one in Canada, the other two in
                                    the U.S.) the Canadian Horseshoe Falls, the American Falls and the smaller, adjacent Bridal Veil Falls. The falls are located
                                    17 miles from the American city of Buffalo, New York and 75 miles from the Canadian city of Toronto, Ontario.

                                    The Falls formed after glaciers receded at the end of the most recent Ice Age, as water from the newly formed Great Lakes
                                    carved a path through the Niagara Escarpment en route to the Atlantic Ocean. While not exceptionally high, Niagara Falls
                                    is very wide. With more than 6 million cubic feet of water falling over the crestline every minute in high flow and almost 4
                                    million cubic feet on average, it is the most powerful waterfalls in North America.

                                     Niagara Falls is renowned both for its beauty and as a valuable source of hydroelectric power for Ontario and New York.
                                     Preserving this natural wonder from commercial over-development, while allowing for the needs of the area's people, the
                                     Falls are shared between the twin cities of Niagara Falls, Ontario and Niagara Falls, New York.

   Number 7     Wild Blueberries

                                   Blueberries belong to a well-travelled family, going back a long way in time and place. Today, a relative of the blueberry
                                   plant is the oldest living thing on earth, estimated by botanists to be more than 13,000 years old.

                                   Wild bears will eat nothing except the succulent, juicy blueberries when they are in season. It has been documented that
                                   they will travel, with an empty stomach, from ten to fifteen miles per day to sniff out a blueberry patch. Blueberries grow
                                   in many places around the world. Cousins of our native North American blueberries live in Asia, Europe and South
                                   America, from the tropics to the land of the Eskimos. But our blueberries did not travel from far-away places to get here.
                                   They are not escapees from early Colonial gardens. Nor are they immigrants whose seed came over on the Mayflower.

                                   Blueberries were here when the first wave of settlers arrived in what was to become America. Early explorers noted
                                   Wild Blueberries on their expeditions. In 1615, Samuel de Champlain saw Indians along Lake Huron harvesting Wild
                                   Blueberries. These were dried, beaten into a pulp/powder and combined with cornmeal, honey and water to make a
                                   pudding called "Sautauthig". Lewis and Clark, while on an expedition found that Indians smoked Wild Blueberries to
                                   preserve them for winter use. A meal served to them by the Indians had Wild Blueberries pounded into the meat,
                                   which was then smoked and dried.

                                   The American Indian held the wild blueberry in very high esteem, due to the fact that the blossom end of each blueberry
                                   forms a five points star. It was believed the "Great Spirit" sent these star berries to relieve the hunger of children during
                                   a famine. Indians also used blueberries for medicinal purposes and made a strong aromatic tea from the root. It was
                                   used as a relaxant during childbirth. Early medical books show this same tea was used by wives of settlers during labor.
                                   Blueberry juice was used for "old coughs" and tea made from Wild Blueberry leaves was believed to be a good tonic
                                   to help purify the blood.

                                    The small Wild Blueberry, to the original settlers, was less foreign to them than the land. Some had known a similar berry
                                    in Scotland, the blaeberry. Blaeberry jam, the story goes, was invented in the court of James V, who became King of
                                    Scots in 1513. His French wife brought her own cooks when she arrived at the castle in Scotland. They harvested the
                                    local wild blaeberries and in typical inventive French gourmet fashion, devised a delicacy which still delights Scottish palates.

                                    English immigrants related the New World blueberry to their whortleberries: the Danes, to bilberries; the Swedes to their
                                   bl�b�r. People from northern Germany recognized their bickberren; those from southern Germany, blauberren. Later
                                    arrivals from Europe, such as the Russians, also had a frame of reference for these berries whose blue reflected the
                                    promising blue skies of the New World. The first commerical venture involved canning Wild Blueberries for the military.