by Lara Gladych –
Seaside Magazine wants to live up to our slogan of being “the voice of the Saanich Peninsula,” so, in every issue, we’ll be asking people to answer a question. We’re looking for responses from all ages and across the diverse neighbourhoods that form our community.
This is our outdoor issue, celebrating all things made better by fresh air, sunshine and nature! Presumably most of us have had at least one memorable outdoor adventure in our lifetime, and for many, outdoor adventure is a regular part of an active lifestyle.
My most memorable outdoor adventure to this day is a three-week Outward Bound course I did in Maine’s Penobscot Bay, when I was 21. It was one of the most difficult things I’ve ever set out to do, as we were assured it would be from the onset. It was a combination of sailing, sea-kayaking and rock climbing, peppered with life lessons in perseverance, endurance and pushing yourself beyond your perceived limits. It would take me pages and pages to describe the whole experience and what I learned. Re-entry to “the real world” was a strange transition after so many nights away from civilization and without a real bed, shower or bathroom. The hardest part of the whole experience wasn’t so much the physical demands as it was learning to co-habitate with many different personalities in a gruelling environment where the good of the group was dependent upon a functioning whole, which wasn’t always easy.
I visited Mattick’s Farm, at the south end of the Peninsula, to see what people there wanted to share about their outdoor adventures.
I first approached a group of women who had just finished their class at Victoria Pilates.
When asked “What outdoor adventures have you had?” sailing was a popular and immediate answer amongst the women. The more they discussed the question, the more they realized how active they were as a group, and that outdoor adventures were plentiful between them.
Rosemary, 57, said she recently went paddleboarding in Cordova Bay for Mother’s Day, and that it was a special experience for her. She also enjoys sailing to Desolation Sound, where one of her favourite treats is trapping prawns.
Karen, 58, cycles once a week, and her favourite route to take is the Lochside Trail (starting in this same area) all the way downtown to the Foi Epi Bakery on Bay Street.
For Pat, 68, watching the BNP Paribas Open, in Indian Wells, California, this past March, was an exciting outdoor highlight. Pat and her friend Lynn, 60, also at the table, attended a week-long surf and pilates retreat in Cerritos Beach on the Baja Peninsula. They enjoyed two hours of surfing and two pilates classes daily, along with some fabulous massages! Wow. As we spoke, Pat made note of a sign hanging in the neighbouring gift shop: “Mind of an athlete, body of a genius.” She thinks it sums up their group rather well.
Moving along, I stopped to chat with two women taking a break from their bicycles. Lake Havasu, on the border between California and Arizona, is a favourite destination for Silvia, 59. Although it may not be an athletic adventure, she recounts the story of taking a wild journey off the beaten path (off of Route 66 in this case), on a road so tricky it took a half hour to negotiate the five miles. At the end was the unadvertised, unmarked Desert Bar, housed in what was formerly a gold mine. It opens from noon to 6 p.m. on weekends only, and Silvia says that likely hundreds of people filled the place during that time.
Silvia’s cycling companion, Gypsy, 59, has an upcoming adventure to Scotland and Ireland planned, where she intends to cycle and hike as much as she can while sampling local beer and scotch along the way.
I next met Brian, 67, Bob, 71, and Rick, 69, who were also taking a break from their bicycles. They’ve cycled in from the mainland, a 26.8-mile trip (via ferry, of course), and Brian’s favourite bike tour. Skiing in Whistler is Bob’s favourite outdoor escape, and something he does frequently. Rick cycles in Richmond, and all the way to Vancouver – his adventure of choice.
My husband Ricky, 52, wanted to jump in on the sharing here. He’s had a lot of unique outdoor adventures, but the one closest to his heart was cycling across the United States, from Florida to California.
What outdoor adventures have you had? Do you keep adding to the list, or is there a special one in the works? There’s a lovely quote from Mark Twain that has always held beautiful imagery for me: “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”
