TMX group

Athabasca Basin, Saskatchewan

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VANCOUVER, Feb. 9 /CNW/ - CanAlaska Ventures Ltd. (the "Company") is
pleased to announce the commencement of drilling on the first of its
16 uranium projects in the Athabasca Basin of Saskatchewan. The Company's
drilling contractor, Cyr International Ltd., has mobilized the first of its
Boyle-56 drilling rigs on site at the West MacArthur Project (See website
www.canalaska.com) to test six targets on the northern portion of the
property.
Multiple target zones exist across the West MacArthur property. The
current drilling is concentrated on land-based sites MC-1 & MC-2 (See website
www.canalaska.com). The Company has established a drilling and geophysics camp
on the shore of Halliday Lake, and is accessing the drill sites by winter
road.
Drill targets in the current program were identified from multiple
airborne surveys (magnetics, electromagnetics, and gravity gradient surveys)
and detailed ground resistivity surveys performed this past summer. The
Company has contracted with Cyr International Ltd. to undertake a minimum of
5,000 metres of drilling as part of a Cdn$ 2.5 million winter exploration
program utilizing 3 drilling rigs.
The West MacArthur uranium targets fit geological models of Aphebian 
meta-sedimentary basins within Archean granitic terrane, disrupted by
significant cross structures. Target depth to the unconformity in this region
is approximately 800 metres. This is supported by historical drilling to the
northeast of the target areas, and by geophysical modeling of the current
anomalies.
Company management and its consultants are highly encouraged by the
coincidence of distinct zones of very low resistivity in the Athabasca
sandstone sequence, directly overlying the basement target areas. These low
resistivity zones are thought to represent alteration halos, similar to that
developed above the uranium deposit at the nearby Cigar Lake mine.
The West MacArthur project is located immediately west of Cameco's
MacArthur River mine, the largest high-grade uranium mine in the world, and
surrounds on three sides, a strategic land position held by Cogema.
CanAlaska's property holdings in this area cover approximately
60,000 hectares, extending from between 6 km to 30 km west of Cameco's
MacArthur River mine. A joint airborne gravity-gradiometry survey of this area
was previously undertaken by CanAlaska in conjunction with Cogema covering
1,550 km2. (See previous September 22, 2005 News Release).
The Qualified Person for this Release is Peter Dasler, MSc., P.Geo.

About CanAlaska Ventures Ltd.

CanAlaska possesses sixteen, 100% owned, uranium projects in the
Athabasca Basin. Since September 2004, the Company has aggressively acquired
one of the largest land positions in the region, comprising over
1,860,000 acres. In 2005, CanAlaska expended over Cdn$4 million exploring its
properties in the Athabasca Basin and delineated multiple uranium targets. The
first of these properties is now being drill-tested.

On behalf of the Board of Directors

Peter Dasler, President

The TSX Venture has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for
the adequacy or accuracy of this release: CUSIP No. 137089108.

This news release contains certain "Forward-Looking Statements" within
the meaning of Section 21E of the United States Securities Exchange Act of
1934, as amended. All statements, other than statements of historical fact,
included herein are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and
uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be
accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from
those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause
actual results to differ materially from the Company's expectations are
disclosed in the Company's documents filed from time to time with the British
Columbia Securities Commission and the United States Securities & Exchange
Commission.