Alpine Inukshuk Building Contest

add to outlook add to google calendar remind me

Saturday, August 2nd, 2014
11:00 AM

Inukshuk, the singular of inuksuit, means "in the likeness of a human" in the Inuit language. They are monuments made of unworked stones that are used by the Inuit for communication and survival. The traditional meaning of the inukshuk is "Someone was here" or "You are on the right path."

On August 2-3, enjoy the Mile High Scenic Chairlift ride on the Eagle chairlift to the summit of Mount Washington (1588 m elevation), build your own inukshuk and enter to win some great prizes.

An inukshuk can be small or large, a single rock, several rocks balanced on each other, round boulders or flat. Built from whatever stones are at hand, each one is unique. The arrangement of stones indicates the purpose of the marker. The directions of arms or legs could indicate the direction of an open channel for navigation, or a valley for passage through the mountains. An inukshuk without arms, or with antlers affixed to it, would act as a marker for a cache of food. A familiar inukshuk is a welcome sight to a traveller on a featureless and forbidding landscape.

An inukshuk in the form of a human being is called an inunnguaq. This type of structure forms the basis of the logo of the 2010 Winter Olympics designed by Vancouver artist Elena Rivera MacGregor.

Take a photo of your inukshuk at the top of Mount Washington and email it to [email protected]. Winners win be announced on our website.

More information: www.mountwashington.ca/things-to-do/events-calendar/event/8-alpine-inukshuk-building-contest.html