Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Frank Slide

Discover Frank Slide in Bellevue, Alberta: A sleepy little town that had the greatest landslide in North American history fall on it.

Tremble Island

Discover Tremble Island in Mount Waddington A, British Columbia: An island said to shake with the current.

Lake Manicouagan

Discover Lake Manicouagan in Rivière-aux-Outardes, Québec: A lake formed in the basin of a massive impact crater takes the shape of an unbroken ring when viewed from above.

Haughton Impact Crater

Discover Haughton Impact Crater in Devon Island, Nunavut: The closest thing to Mars on Earth.

Jumbo the Elephant

Discover Jumbo the Elephant in Saint Thomas, Ontario: The statue of the famous elephant who was the original source of the word "jumbo".

Ocean Falls

Discover Ocean Falls in Ocean Falls, British Columbia: Beautiful mostly-abandoned town only accessible by sea-worthy boat or plane.

Operation Habbakuk at Patricia Lake

Discover Operation Habbakuk at Patricia Lake in Jasper, Alberta: The site of a strange super top-secret military experiment during WWII on a remote Canadian lake.

La Sala Rossa

Discover La Sala Rossa in Montreal, Québec: From lefty Jewish gathering site to hip cultural site in just 80 years.

Beaudry Metro

Discover Beaudry Metro in Montreal, Québec: Montreal's colorful subway station shows its support of the local LGBT+ community.

Musée des Ondes Emile Berliner

Discover Musée des Ondes Emile Berliner in Montréal, Québec: This indiscriminate collection of audio antiques is trying to preserve the history of the audio industry one vintage appliance at a time.

Old Burying Ground

Discover Old Burying Ground in Halifax, Nova Scotia: This historic cemetery stopped accepting bodies before many Canadian cities were founded.

Duncan’s Cove Ruins

Discover Duncan's Cove Ruins in Duncans Cove, Nova Scotia: Explore the ruins of war and maritime history along this gorgeously ferocious North Atlantic seascape.

The Badlands Guardian

Discover The Badlands Guardian in Walsh, Alberta: A face emerges from the landscape when seen from the air.

Old Country Market

Discover Old Country Market in Coombs, British Columbia: This quirky countryside store is known for the goats that hang out and eat the grass on its roof.

Narcisse Snake Dens

Discover Narcisse Snake Dens in Gimli, Manitoba: The largest single concentration of harmless garter snakes in the world is a writhing Canadian serpent orgy.

Dover Island, Nova Scotia

Discover Dover Island, Nova Scotia in West Dover, Nova Scotia: Eastern Canada's ocean playground.

World’s Largest Axe

Discover World's Largest Axe in Nackawic, New Brunswick: The largest axe on the planet contains a time capsule that seems like it may never be discovered.

Zavikon Island

Discover Zavikon Island in Zavikon Island, Ontario: The purported world's shortest international bridge connects a homeowner in Canada to his backyard in New York.

Maud Lewis’ Painted House

Discover Maud Lewis' Painted House in Halifax, Nova Scotia: This tiny abode has been covered in the art of the little old lady who made her life and living there.

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i
To represent a masterpiece of human creative genius. 261 ii
To exhibit an important interchange of human values, over a span of time or within a cultural area of the world, on developments in architecture or technology, monumental arts, town-planning or landscape design. 480 iii
To bear a unique or at least exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition or to a civilization which is living or which has disappeared. 514 iv
To be an outstanding example of a type of building, architectural or technological ensemble or landscape which illustrates (a) significant stage(s) in human history. 642 ix
To be outstanding examples representing significant on-going ecological and biological processes in the evolution and development of terrestrial, fresh water, coastal and marine ecosystems and communities of plants and animals. 137 v
To be an outstanding example of a traditional human settlement, land-use, or sea-use which is representative of a culture (or cultures), or human interaction with the environment especially when it has become vulnerable under the impact of irreversible change. 172 vi
To be directly or tangibly associated with events or living traditions, with ideas, or with beliefs, with artistic and literary works of outstanding universal significance. (The Committee considers that this criterion should preferably be used in conjunction with other criteria). 256 vii
To contain superlative natural phenomena or areas of exceptional natural beauty and aesthetic importance. 151 viii
To be outstanding examples representing major stages of earth's history, including the record of life, significant on-going geological processes in the development of landforms, or significant geomorphic or physiographic features. 98 x
To contain the most important and significant natural habitats for in-situ conservation of biological diversity, including those containing threatened species of outstanding universal value from the point of view of science or conservation. 168

PP ToS