Christmas Island NS

Well it's that time of year again! This cover comes from Christmas Island, Nova Scotia. Unlike the Christmas Island Australia post office, this post office has a very festive postmark. Every year the Christmas Island NS post office gets thousands of cards from around the world to get the unique Christmas wreath post mark.

The postmark is stamped in two colours and is dated Dec 4, 2014

The mailing address for Christmas Island PO is below.

Churchill MB

Here's a special cancel from Churchill Manitoba. AKA Polar Bear Capital of the world, large numbers of polar bears trek into the town during the summer months when the sea ice is gone in search of food. The cancel is dated   November 18, 2014. This is one of the few cancels not listed on Canada Post's website.

Edmonton AB

This postcard has two pictorial postmarks from the Albertan Capital of Edmonton. The first postmark features Edmonton City Hall with the phrase Alberta's Capital City. The date stamp on this cancel doesn't work anymore.

The second postmark is the Chinatown Gates postmark, it was introduced for the Chinatown Gate Stamps that were released last year, Edmonton was one of the cities featured on the stamp. There are two Chinese guardian lions at the top of the postmark in very fine detail and the word door written in Chinese at the bottom. The postmark is dated August 29, 2014.

These two cancels are available at the Main Post Office in Edmonton:
EDMONTON MAIN PO
11808-104 AVE NW
EDMONTON AB T5K 0C0

Eureka NU

This cover is from Eureka Nunavut, which is a small research base in Northern Canada. It took about 2 months for this cover to come back to me after I sent it out! 

Iqaluit NU

This cover is from the northern community of Iqaluit Nunavut. The post mark has a picture of an inukshuk as well as a some words written in Inukitut. The pictorial cancel is dated June 2, 2014 while the machine cancel is dated June 7, 2014.

Houston BC

This cover comes from Houston British Columbia. The town is home to the world's largest fly rod and its featured on the postmark.The fly rod is 18 m long  and weighs over 350 kg! The postmark is dated May 15, 2014 

Harry Hill AB

Hairy Hill is a small Hamlet located in East Central Alberta. The postmark features a Bison and the pictorial postmark is dated May 9, 2014 while the machine cancel is dated May 10, 2014.

Christmas Island AU

This is my first international cover and one of the most challenging to get. This cover is from Christmas Island Australia located in the Indian Ocean. It took about 2 months for this cover arrive but it's well worth it. The postmark marks feature the Christmas Island Red Crab and is dated May 19. 2014.

 The mailing address for this post office is:

Christmas Island Post Office

412 Canberra Pl

Christmas Island WA 6798

Australia

Make sure your return envelope has Australian stamps  on it, if you don't have Australian stamps just enclose an International Reply Coupon (sold at the post office).

Berwick NS

This cover is from Berwick Nova Scotia. Berwick is known as the Apple Capital of Canada, the post mark features an image of an apple with the words "Town of Berwick". It is dated May 2, 2014.

Bear River NS

This cover from Bear River Nova Scotia is one of my favourites. The postmark features a large cherry since Bear River is known for a large cherry carnival each year. The date on the postmark is May 2, 2014 

Little River NS

This cover is from Little River Nova Scotia. Little River is located in the Bay of Fundy, which is known for the highest tides in the world. The tides reach as high as 15 m. The postmark features a lobster and the quote "Catch of the Day". The postmark is dated May 1, 2014.

Cavendish PE

This cover comes from Cavendish Prince Edward Island. This is also the home of Anne of Green Gables, hence the hat with pony tails on the postmark. Anne of Green Gables is a popular book written by Lucy Montgomery of a girl who lives on a farm house in Prince Edward Island. I sent this cover out over a month ago and it just came in the mail the other day. The pictorial cancel is dated July 21, 2014, while the machine cancel is dated July 22, 2014.

Alix AB

This cover comes form the Central Albertan town of Alix. The cancel features the town's mascot known as "Alix Gator". The postmark is dated April 30, 2014, but the machine cancel is dated May 1, 2014.

Here is a clearer version of the postmark from the Canada Post website:

Bath NB

This cover comes from the small village of Bath, New Brunswick. Located on the Western side of the province, it's just a few kilometres from the US border with Maine. The postmark features a bathtub filled with bubbles to reflect the unique name of the town. The cancel is dated April 17, 2014.

Niagara-on-the-Lake ON

The last of the Haunted Canada cancels comes from Niagara-on-the-Lake Ontario.  The post mark features the same haunted figures from the stamp. The cancel is dated July 9, 2014. Surprisingly this is the last of the Haunted Canada covers to come back to me considering I got the phantom ship cover from Nova Scotia back faster which is further away from me than Niagara-on-the-Lake.

Ontario's Fort George: Phantom footsteps and ghosts make this one of the most haunted places in Canada (From Canada Post)

Monarch AB

This cover comes from Monarch Alberta, just northeast of Lethbridge. The cancel features a monarch butterfly. The cancel should be dated April 30, 201. Although the date isn't very clear, at least the butterfly is nice and clear.

Toronto ON

With the imminent closure of Postal Station K in Toronto I quickly sent a cover over there to get a copy of their special postmark. The postmark features the historic Postal Station K building which Canada Post has sold off to a developer. I believe the plans include building a condo tower on the current site and have the current building some how integrated into the new condo. The cancel is dated April 16, 2014.

Quebec QC

Another Haunted Canada Cover today, this time from Quebec City Quebec. The postmark features the Count of Frontenac of the Fairmont Château Frontenac. The hand cancel is dated July 2, 2014 and the machine cancel is dated July 3, 2014.

 Quebec's Château Frontenac: The hotel's namesake is said to wander hotel halls in this 17th century garb (From Canada Post)

I was also surprised that the postmaster gave me a copy of this postmark of the 350th anniversary of the Notre Dame cathedral. It's not even listed on the Canada Post website! The cancel is dated July 2, 2014.

River John NS

This Haunted Canada postmark comes from River John Nova Scotia. River John is one of 5 cities that has the phantom ship cancel. I'm still waiting for 2 more Haunted Canada covers to return, Niagara on the Lake and Quebec City.This cover has a machine cancel as well, the hand cancel is dated July 2, 2014.

PEI's Northumberland Strait: A burning ship is often spotted between NB and PEI. As would-be rescuers approach, the ship disappears into the mist (From Canada Post)

River John also has another pictorial cancel featuring a sailing ship inside a ships wheel. The postmark is dated July 2, 2014.

Rouleau SK

The next cover comes from Rouleau Saskatchewan AKA Dog River from the hit TV series Corner Gas. The logo of the TV series and Dog River appears on the postmark. This postmark is not listed on Canada Post's website of pictorial postmarks and was applied in excellent condition. The postmark is dated April 14, 2014.

St. Louis SK

This cover comes from St. Louis Saskatchewan and features the St. Louis Ghost Train. The cancel is in a series of cancels produced by Canada Post for the release of the Haunted Canada Stamps. In addition to the hand cancel, it was also machine cancelled. The postmark is dated June 30, 2014 

Saskatchewan's St. Louis Ghost Train: Believers say a ghostly glowing light is a CNR (Canadian National Rail) conductor who lost his head to a passing train in the 1920s (From Canada Post)

I was also hoping to get a copy of their other pictorial cancel with the bison and the bridge, but it is no longer available. Here is what it would have looked like:

Banff AB

Here is cover from Banff Alberta  I just got today featuring their newest postmark, the "Ghost Bride". The postmark came out on the same day as the new Haunted Canada stamps (Fri Jul 13).  The postmark is dated Jun 30, 2014.

Alberta's Ghost Bride: The ghost of a 1920s bride who died in the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel is said to inhabit the hotel to this day. (From Canada Post)

In addition to the Haunted Canada cancel, I also got a copy of their other pictorial postmark featuring an elk in front of a mountain. The postmark is also dated Jun 30, 2014.

First Post - Vulcan AB

Firstly, I want to welcome you to my blog and I hope you enjoy my posts. I will try to update this blog as often as I can. This cover features a postmark from Vulcan Alberta. Located in Southern Alberta, the town shares a similar name to the Star Trek planet of Vulcan, where Spock is born. The building in the postmark is the Vulcan Tourism & Trek Station. The postmark is dated 2014-04-14.