The prime minister looks on in mild amusement as his wife is gnawed by a dog.

Stephen Harper began his eighth annual Northern Tour August 18, accompanied by his wife, Laureen, and a gaggle of ministers.

The tour launched Sunday as the prime minister and his entourage landed in Whitehorse, where Harper spoke at a Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) BBQ and attended an afternoon picnic in Miles Canyon.

In his remarks at the CPC BBQ, Harper announced financial support for the Centre for Northern Innovation in Mining, compared himself (again) to Diefenbaker, and accused his political opponents of “dangerous ideas and vacuous thinking.”

On Tuesday in Hay River, Harper met with fellow Conservatives at the local golf club.

In a post on the Northern Tour blog, Laureen provided teasers of tour plans, including a photo of herself on an ATV from 2012’s tour, suggesting there may be some off-roading in the Harpers’ future. Regardless, with Harper’s social media platforms documenting the couple’s Northern adventures, Laureen and Stephen’s fun vacation up North presents a lighthearted perspective but tends to ignore the very real, critical issues facing Northern communities—something we’d love to hear more about.

After campaign-style stops in Whitehorse, Hay River, and Gjoa Haven, the tour is scheduled to hit Rankin Inlet and end in Raglan Mine, Que. later this week. The Northern Tour is funded by tax revenue, and you can tune into extensive coverage on the prime minister’s blog, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.