Archives: Atlas Obscuras

Sunnyslope Shelter

Discover Sunnyslope Shelter in Linden, Alberta: Sitting empty in a lonely Canadian field is a century-old stone bunker sometimes called "One Man's Castle.".

World’s First UFO Landing Pad

Discover World's First UFO Landing Pad in Saint Paul, Alberta: Canadian centennial project designed to gather information about UFOs.

West Edmonton Mall

Discover West Edmonton Mall in Edmonton, Alberta: This massive mall has hundreds of shops, an amusement park, and a history of deadly amusement attractions.

Île d’Entrée (Entry Island)

Discover Île d'Entrée (Entry Island) in Havre-Aubert, Québec: A tiny, picturesque island, where cows and wild horses wander around the houses.

Athabasca Sand Dunes

Discover Athabasca Sand Dunes in Saskatchewan: The most northerly active sand dunes in the world have some very rare botanical residents.

Royston Shipwrecks

Discover Royston Shipwrecks in Courtenay, British Columbia: At least 14 twice-retired ships were sunk to make a lovely rusting breakwater in Comox Harbour.

Dildo, Newfoundland

Discover Dildo, Newfoundland in Dildo, Newfoundland and Labrador: This oddly named town refuses to change its phallic moniker.

Wolfe’s Cove Tunnel

Discover Wolfe's Cove Tunnel in Québec City, Québec: Train tunnel running underneath Quebec City.

Wing Sang Building

Discover Wing Sang Building in Vancouver, British Columbia: The oldest building in Vancouver's Chinatown is now home to one of Canada’s largest contemporary art collections.

The Tablelands

Discover The Tablelands in Division No. 9, Subd. A, Newfoundland and Labrador: This rocky spread has been squeezed up directly from the bowels of the earth.

Sudbury Neutrino Observatory

Discover Sudbury Neutrino Observatory in Sudbury, Ontario: A neutrino detector built into the largest man-made underground cavity in the world.

Morrin Centre

Discover Morrin Centre in Québec City, Québec: This former prison now houses a lovely library devoted to Quebec's oft-maligned English-speaking history.

Mazinaw Rock

Discover Mazinaw Rock in Cloyne, Ontario: This water-locked cliff face is covered in hundreds of ancient pictographs.

The Sourtoe Cocktail

Discover The Sourtoe Cocktail in Dawson City, Yukon: A famed drink seasoned with an amputated toe, now on its tenth digit.

Plane Wreck of Heritage Park

Discover Plane Wreck of Heritage Park in Mission, British Columbia: Mysterious wreckage of a small plane has been lodged in this tree since at least 1971.

Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre and Museum

Discover Montreal Holocaust Memorial Centre and Museum in Montreal, Québec: A community-run museum invites visitors to explore Jewish communities before and after the Holocaust.

Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump

Discover Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump in Fort Macleod, Alberta: Historic site where Native American hunters once trapped and killed buffalo.

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i
To represent a masterpiece of human creative genius. 260 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. 474 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. 499 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. 633 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. 135 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. 167 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). 252 vii
To contain superlative natural phenomena or areas of exceptional natural beauty and aesthetic importance. 148 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. 96 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. 166

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