Arguably the most recognizable landmark in southwest Manitoba, Tommy is the name given to a 28-foot tall green, yellow, and red fiberglass painted turtle near the intersection of PTH 10 and PR 443 in Boissevain. Holding a Canadian flag in his right hand and an American flag in his left, Tommy faces north(ish) to let southbound travellers know they are approaching both the United States and his namesake, the Turtle Mountains. An audio system gives Tommy his “voice”, welcoming people to the area.
Tommy was designed by renowned sculptor George Barone and unveiled in 1974 at a cost of $9,000, one of eight Manitoba monuments sculpted by Barone from 1966-1981.* His name is inscribed on Tommy’s tail.
Another turtle-related object in the vicinity is a “turtle starting gate”, which I’m guessing you haven’t seen anywhere else! From 1971-2001, Boissevain hosted the annual Canadian Turtle Derby, which saw up to several hundred turtles race against each other.
*George Barone also sculpted the White Horse near St. Francois Xavier, the Viking statue in Gimli, Hi Neighbour Sam in Transcona (Winnipeg), Alpine Archie in McCreary, Sara the Camel in Glenboro, the Sharptail Grouse in Ashern, and the Miner monument in Thompson.
While you’re here, feel free to log waymarks for both Tommy and the turtle starting gate.
Sources
https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/tommy-the-turtle-boissevain
http://www.mhs.mb.ca/docs/people/barone_g.shtml
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To log this virtual cache as found, post a photo of yourself with Tommy the Turtle. Your face does not need to be visible – you can instead show your GPSr, a sign with your caching name, or a personal item of some kind. But the photo must show that you were there. Merely posting a photo of Tommy (such as the one in this cache description) is not sufficient. Logs that do not contain a qualifying photo will be deleted.
Note: If you visited Tommy at some point in the past, you are welcome to log this virtual cache as found without coming back, as long as you post a photo that meets the requirements. If in doubt, please ask me in advance.
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Virtual Rewards 3.0 - 2022-2023
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between March 1, 2022 and March 1, 2023. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 3.0 on the Geocaching Blog.
FTF: TalonHunter