Well, Canada was in the Pacific War almost from the start. There were two Canadian battalions in Hong Kong at the outbreak of war, and a Japanese submarine torpedoed a ship right off Vancouver Island. Another submarine then shelled the Estevan Point lighthouse in June 1942.

Canadian participation in the Pacific was limited, however, because it had such a large presence in the war against Germany. At the time of the declaration of war against Japan, Canada had five divisions overseas and another three for home defense.

Nevertheless, some Canadians fought -- and well -- in the Aleutian Campaign. Garfield's Thousand-Mile War remains the best history of this fighting. In 1943, for example, the force earmarked for the invasion of Kiska Island included 34,426 combat troops. Among these was Maj. Gen. George Randolph Pearkes, commanding general of the Canadian Army Pacific Command. He led the Canadian Brigade, a group of soldiers taken from the home defense units by special order from Ottawa.

"Some of the units were English-speaking — the Rocky Mountain Rangers, the Winnipeg Grenadiers and Canadian Fusiliers — and others, like Le Régiment de Hull, spoke French. Thrown into training at Adak with American staffs and soldiers, the Canadians found the differences vast — not only in language, but in equipment, terminology, organization, and even insignia of rank.

In their black berets, the Canadians decided to adopt American insignia to end the confusion; RCA lance corporals and leftenants blossomed forth in stripes and bars in addition to their own crowns and pips. By the time they boarded ship for the assault, the Canadians were equipped with their own battle dress and shoes, American cold-weather gear and artillery, and a mixture of rifles and equipment."

The Canadians at Kiska suffered four dead and four wounded.

The RCN sent a pair of corvettes, which participated in the campaign.

The RCAF also participated in the Aleutian campaign. it operated four air squadrons on regular duty in the Aleutians. By Aug. 1943, they had lost 17 pilots in the campaign. The 111th Fighter Squadron flew top cover for American bombers that flew attack and photoreconnaissance missions, for example.

There was even a Canadian commando force. The 1st Special Service Force was a joint Canadian-American unit in which each American soldier was paired off with a Canadian counterpart. They conducted beach reconnaissance, downed pilot rescues and shore security against supposed Japanese infiltrators of the BC coast. They later saw their most famous action in Italy and France, where half of the SSF was killed or MIA.

Away from the Aleutian campaign, there was the program to construct the Alaska Highway and the Northwest Staging Route, the less-well-known string of airstrips that sent more than 7,000 aircraft to Alaska (most were Lend-Lease prizes for the Soviet Union.)