Letters from Canada

Summer is the season for travel and we’re going to take you around the globe in our new blog series, highlighting stamps from countries worldwide. For our first trip, we’re looking at some of Canada Post‘s 2012 stamps. We spotted a few overlapping themes with USPS’s 2012 stamp program, and some notable differences, too.

The War of 1812

The War of 1812 was largely as important to the provinces that would later unite into the Dominion of Canada as it was to the United States. It’s no wonder, then, that both USPS and Canada Post are issuing stamps this year to commemorate the war’s bicentennial. Canada Post’s two-stamp se-tenant issuance focuses on two heroes of the war—British Major-General Sir Isaac Brock and War Chief Tecumseh—with images of a frontier settlement and Native American camp in the background. These stamps pay tribute to the historical impact of the war and Canada’s cultural makeup.

Year of the Dragon

Canada Post rang in the Year of the Dragon in January with an issuance featuring the highly revered, mystical creature, which represents fortune, power, and good luck in Chinese folklore. The depiction of the serpent-like dragon includes gold foil and embossing, making the stamps really jump off the envelope!

Franklin the Turtle

In May, Canada Post began a Children’s Literature series with a set of four stamps honoring beloved children’s book character Franklin the Turtle. Lovable Franklin is one of our favorite characters and we had no idea his more than 100 children’s stories were written, illustrated, and published in Canada. This certainly takes us back to our childhood!

Our philatelic interest is piqued and we can’t wait to see some stamps from other parts of the world. Where would you like us to go next?

Falling for New Stamped Postcards

The Niagara River, separating the United States from Canada, flows from Lake Erie into Lake Ontario, plunging over a 182-foot precipice into a steep, canyon-like gorge. Niagara Falls is one the most famous natural wonders in the world and a traditional destination for honeymooners.

Goat Island, also known as Luna Island, divides the American portion of Niagara Falls in New York—the American Falls—from the Canadian portion in Ontario—Horseshoe Falls. Twenty percent of the world’s fresh-water supply flows over Niagara Falls. This torrential waterfall is also one of the world’s greatest generators of electric power.

This majestic stamp image of the roiling waters of Niagara Falls is one of 10 designs featured on the upcoming set of Scenic American Landscapes stamp cards. Scheduled for release on June 23, these beautiful postcards are the second set highlighting some of our nation’s more beautiful natural places.

Voyageur National Park’s Ancient, Traveling History

Established on April 8, 1975, Voyageurs National Park on the northern edge of Minnesota includes four lakes connected by waterways, more than 500 islands, a strip of mainland shore, and 26 smaller inland lakes, most of them located on Kabetogama Peninsula, the park’s largest landmass. More than one-third of the 218,054-acre park is water.

The park was named for the voyageurs, French Canadians legendary for their canoe trips for fur trading companies in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Fifty-five miles of the park’s northern boundary was a portion of the voyageurs’ historic route.

The park’s rock formations, many more than 2.5 billion years old, are some of the oldest exposed rock in the world. A combination of habitats supports a wealthy diversity of life, including approximately 700 species of flora, more than 240 species of birds, and 53 species of fish. Fifty-three miles of trails for hiking, 32 miles of trails for cross-country skiing, and 110 miles of groomed trails for snowmobiling complement this spectacular array of wildlife.

While most of the waterways are frozen from mid-November until late-April, almost 250,000 people visit the park annually.

To celebrate National Park Week, we’re holding a daily contest here on the blog centered around our love of national parks. Each day’s single winner will receive a set of the Scenic American Landscapes stamped cards, which showcase photographs from parks across the country.

To enter the contest for today, simply answer the following two-part question:

How many national park stamps were issued in 1934 and to which parks do they pay tribute?

Submit your answer to uspsstamps [at] gmail [dot] com and remember, spelling counts! The winner will be selected at random and notified by email. Deadline for entries is 12 p.m. EST on Wednesday, April 25. Good luck!