Fundy — The Department of Tourism, Heritage and Culture has put out a call for pictures of the Hopewell Rocks after losing all of their own photos of the iconic attraction. The announcement was made Tuesday by department spokesperson Sophie Mackintosh.
“Well, we were starting to get our promo materials ready for the tourism season. You know we have to get that stuff started early — it takes a lot of man-hours. And we noticed that all of the pictures of the Flowerpot Rocks were missing,” Mackintosh said referring to New Brunswick’s signature rock formation.
She explained that a technical problem led to their disappearance. “Those pictures have always been in New Folder (17) on the server. Ever since we went digital years ago they’ve been there. Everybody knew if you need Flowerpot shots, head over to New Folder (17).”
“Well, when we started to get ready for this season, we went to pull up a picture, and nothing. Literally nothing. No pictures, no folder, no nothing.”
With the drop in the Canadian dollar and the price of gas, this summer is expected to be a busy tourist season for New Brunswick as people take vacations closer to home.
“Without those pictures we can’t compete with PEI and Nova Scotia. I mean, we need to draw the Upper Canadians to New Brunswick. But Anne and ‘Canada’s Ocean Playground’ is a big draw,” spat Mackintosh.
The department is reaching out to citizens for their help. “So, we are asking regular everyday New Brunswickers to send in any photos they have of the Hopewell Rocks. Without them I don’t really know what we’ll do.”
Mackintosh explained that any photos of the rocks would be good. “It’s best if they have a family in the foreground. Non-white or mixed race families are welcome, but everyone should be fairly light-skinned. And attractive. They need to be attractive.”
The department is open to keeping their materials modern. “Selfies are welcome too. We want to stay fresh, you know. Keep our image up to date.”
A prize will be offered to anyone whose photo gets chosen. “We’ve got a free weekend at the government’s fishing camp, Larry’s Gulch, to give away. You should see that place. Man, if the walls could speak.”
If the department cannot find a suitable picture, Mackintosh is not sure what they will do. “We’d have to make a picture of them, I guess. Nova Scotia makes up a part of the Bay of Fundy, too. People often forget that, but the Bay wouldn’t even exist without Nova Scotia. Their side sucks a bit. It’s kind of like the American side of Niagara Falls — all rocks, no splash, if you know what I mean. But if we have no other choice, I guess we’ll have to take a photo of the bay from Nova Scotia’s tourism website and Photoshop the Flowerpots onto it. It’s crazy what those kids can do with a computer.”
If you would like to submit your photo of the Hopewell Rocks, send them directly to Mackintosh at sophie.mackintosh@gnb.ca.