Wanuskewin Heritage Park, just outside of Saskatoon was a highlight for our AM travel crew. The park offers a variety of traditional dance style performances daily throughout the summer as well as six kilometres of hiking trails that traverse a valley, which features 6,000 years of First Nations history.

Throughout the valley there are 19 different points of interest including ancient tipi rings, bison jumps as well as the most northerly medicine wheel in the world. The park is also home to Canada's longest running archaeological dig site.

Since our visit last year, the park has announced its formal intent to apply for UNESCO World Heritage designation. The first in Saskatchewan if they succeed! As part of that the Park wants to install some new exhibits, renew its focus on environmental conservation and bring back a small herd of Plains bison. All of these things are in the early stages of planning.

In 2002 there were 892 aboriginal tourism business and now there are almost double that.

Two years ago, many of them came together to form the Aboriginal Tourism Association of Canada. www.aboriginalcanada.ca. It is a great place to start looking for more information on all the aboriginal tourism experiences offered across the country. I love the easy to follow map, which outlines the various tourism offerings in Canada.

Some offerings which are new this year, include:

  • In PEI local Mi'kmaq chefs are offering a culinary feast at Holland College, which tourists can participate in.
  • In Victoria Eagle Wing Tours is offering a Songhees First Nation Cultural Tour beginning this June. A Songhees Nation guide will take you to the Songhees Islands, a small archipelago located off southern Vancouver Island.
    Learn about Joan Morris (Sellemah), a Songhees elder who was the last woman to live on the islands and how her family used their knowledge of the land and sea. Find out about the people who lived on the islands and along the coast and their traditional food sources such as camus bulbs, gull's eggs and seafood harvested locally. Half of the tour cost will go directly to the Songhees Nation to help revitalize the area and promote long-term sustainability for the people and ecosystems in Tl'chés. The tour is available for $250 CAD.
  • Up North the Yukon's Shakat-tun Adventures offers longer camps for everything from learning about traditional medicines and sweat lodges to fish frying and moose hide tanning. Hikes, drumming and dancing and crafts included.