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The remote York Factory National Historic Site (June to mid-Sept daily 8am-5pm, depending on river conditions) lies 240km southeast of Churchill, at the mouth of the Hayes and Nelson rivers. This was the central storehouse of the northwestern fur trade throughout the eighteenth century, its wooden palisades the temporary home of soldiers and explorers, travellers and traders, and settlers bound for the Red River Colony at present-day Winnipeg. With the amalgamation of the North West and Hudson's Bay companies in 1821, it was here that the new governor George Simpson set about the delicate task of reconciling the feuds stirred by a generation of inter-company rivalry. In October he arranged his first formal joint banquet, 73 traders facing each other across two long and narrow tables. It was, according to a contemporary, "dollars to doughnuts [whether it would be] a feed or fight", but Simpson's diplomatic skills triumphed, leading to a successful reorganization of trading operations. In its heyday, there were some fifty buildings within the stockade, including a guesthouse, fur stores, trading rooms, living quarters and shops, but they were all destroyed in the 1930s, with the exception of the main warehouse (1832), a sturdy wooden building that serves as a reminder of the fort's earlier significance. Wandering around the desolate site today, it's hard to imagine that it was once the largest community in western Canada. Guided tours of the site are available (contact the Parks Canada Visitor Reception Centre in Churchill; $5). This remote spot can only be reached by charter flight - weather permitting - from Thompson, Churchill or Gillam, a hydroelectric centre on the rail line between Winnipeg and Churchill. Or you can get there by canoe along the Hayes River from Norway House on the north shore of Lake Winnipeg - an arduous journey of 600km, which should not be undertaken without advice from the Manitoba Parks Department in Winnipeg (tel 945-6784 or 1-800/214-6497, www.gov.mb.ca/natres/parks ). Because of the disturbance to polar bears in the area, camping is not allowed at York Factory. The only place to stay is the Silver Goose Lodge , and this must be arranged in advance with the owners (tel 652-2776; $80-100). There are no services, and all supplies must be brought in.
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