150 Little Known Canadian Facts #14

This week’s Canadian facts cover a broad spectrum of subjects, from education all the way to federal law—plus we’ve reached our 100^th fact!

93.  In the late 1800s, pioneers in British Columbia found an extraordinary use for a fish. This fish, (which has many aliases: oolichan, ooligan, hooligan, eulachon and Pacific smelt to name a few), has a high oil content. The pioneers learned that when the fish was dried, one could string a wick through it and use it as a candle, which is also why it’s called a candlefish. If there was a good run of oolichan, it helped keep the First Nations of the area from starving over the winters.

94.  In Dawson City, Yukon, the Sourdough Saloon has a cocktail that may make one hesitate in drinking it. It’s called the Sourtoe Cocktail. Reportedly, this cocktail contains at least an ounce of any alcoholic spirit you prefer—and a real, preserved big toe. There’s a Sourtoe Cocktail Club that’s about 100,000 members strong, which began in 1973. The only rule is “you can drink it fast, you can drink it slow, but the lips have got to touch the toe.” Bottoms up!

95.  Canada has invoked the War Measures Act only three times since it was adopted in 1914: WWI, WWII and the 1970 October Crisis in Quebec, which was the only time the Act has been used domestically. The War Measures Act was repealed in 1988 and replaced with the Emergencies Act, which limits governmental powers during any emergency involving Canada’s security.

96.  According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Canada is first for people aged 25 to 64 who have gone to college or university. This is because of Canada’s high rate of college-based vocational education. We’re tied for 7th place with Korea and Denmark for adults who have a university education; we’re in 17^th place for Canadians aged 25 to 34 who have a university degree; and we’re in 6th place for being the most popular destination for international students to get a post-secondary education after the U.S., the U.K., Germany, France and Australia respectively.

97.  The Great Canadian Trail will be the longest recreational trail in the world. It’s currently 91% complete and covers 21,500 km. When finished, the trail will connect this country from coast to coast to coast. It goes through urban, rural and wilderness areas on land, water and roads. The website has downloadable apps, as well as information about any part of the trail such as elevation, detailed maps, distances, photos and directions. Just to put this project into perspective: from Cape Spear, NFLD to the Yukon-Alaskan border is 5,514 km (east to west); from Cape Columbia, Nunavut to Middle Island (Lake Erie), ON is 4,634 km (north to south); and the total area is 9, 984, 670 km². To find out more go to thegreattrail.ca.

98.  Did you know the creator of The Friendly Giant was an American by the name of Robert Homme? The show was first aired on the University of Wisconsin’s radio station in 1953, and then aired on the university’s TV station. When Homme pitched the idea to CBC, the station immediately picked it up, and the first episode aired in September of 1958. Homme played the Friendly Giant, and Ron Coneybeare puppeted Jerome the Giraffe and Rusty the Rooster—he got the job because of his deep voice and his long arm span. None of the shows had a script, which was unlike most of the children’s shows of the time. Each show was only 15 minutes long, which Homme believed was just as long as a young child’s attention span. There were more than 3,000 episodes over its 27-year run, and the last episode aired in March of 1985. Despite the time that’s past, many Canadians will always remember these words, “…one little chair for you, a big chair for two to curl up in, and for someone who likes to rock, a rocking chair. Now, look up—wa-a-a-a-a-y up!”

99.  Our northern permafrost covers over half of Canada’s landmass, and it’s continuously being monitored by the Geological Survey of Canada and the Centres d’etudes Nordiques. Generally, most of the permafrost is less than 75 m thick and is just a few degrees below melting. Research models are showing that because of climate change the permafrost could decrease by about half by the end of the century.

100.  For the past 14 years, Philip Currie and some staff and students from the University of Alberta have been digging at a portion of Whitemud Creek in south Edmonton. Why? In 1989 local artist Danek Mozdzenski discovered a bone sticking out of a bank. It turned out to be a dinosaur bone. The Danek Bonebed has so far yielded 15 skeletons of Edmontosaurus and Albertosaurus.