Saturday evening ended with a celebration to mark the end of this grand expedition. Each participant received a certificate from the Foundation, as well as a Foundation t-shirt, skin care products from our partner Clarins, and a duffle bag from our partner Produits forestiers Résolu. Mauricio also presented each participant with a Voyageur Quest baseball cap.
Today, we leave Algonquin Provincial Park and say goodbye to our guides Mauricio and Chloé. They have been an inspiration to all of us. It’s thanks to them that we’ve been able to explore this beautiful landscape and discover a part of ourselves.
The bus meets us at the entrance to Surprise Lake Road. It’s Christian, the same driver we had on the way in! He apparently told his bosses that if he wasn’t driving us today, he’d quit. Looks like he’s got a little crush on us.
We fill up the luggage compartment with our gear and then we’re ready to head out. We have an eight-hour drive ahead of us. It’s pretty quiet on the bus. The participants pass around their t-shirts so that everyone can sign them as a souvenir. We stop in Petawawa for lunch. Inspired by another table, Thomas mentions to our waitress that it’s Owen’s birthday. As you may have gathered, it’s not true, but the waitress gets on board. The kids are having a blast. Owen ends up being treated to a celebration by the entire service staff. Let’s just say he was a little bit embarrassed!
Back on the road, the facilitators take the opportunity to address the youngsters. They remind them that, yes, today they have to part ways. But, as Foundation co-founder Mario Bilodeau says, they’re not losing friends: if anything, they’re gaining new ones. They may also experience the expedition blues in the next few days. Afterall, they’ve spent 8 days in a group of 19 people, and suddenly they’re on their own. They’ve experienced some powerful moments that are hard to explain to anyone who wasn’t there. They may find it difficult. The facilitators reassure them that they will be there to accompany them on their return.
We stop in Ottawa to drop off the last people to join us on the way in: Jillian, Mykhailo and Julie, one of the nurses who accompanied us. Goodbyes are always difficult. The youngsters we’re dropping off are not the same ones we picked up a week ago. They’ve grown, they’ve blossomed, they’re more self-confident. It’s both heartbreaking and beautiful to watch them take flight. We continue on our way.
About an hour before hitting Montréal, the youngsters get their electronics back, which they’ve been deprived of for a whole week. The expedition is all about human connection and connecting with nature, and it works!
Once we arrive in Montréal, it’s time for more goodbyes. Several youngsters are flying back tonight and, a few, early tomorrow morning. They’re happy to be going home, but sad to be leaving their friends. It’s an emotional time for them and for us.
It’s been an absolute privilege to have been part of this adventure with this group of youngsters! To have seen them enjoy themselves, laugh, thrive and grow so much in such a short time . . . I continue to believe that what the Foundation does is magical and changes lives. I’m convinced that the participants will remember this once-in-a-lifetime experience for a long time to come. I hope they are proud of themselves for seizing this opportunity and that they will continue to thrive. Trust me, the best is yet to come! I know, because I was once a teenager on one of the Foundation’s expeditions following my journey with cancer, and here I am, 12 years later, writing this blog . . .
Laurence Yelle, Volunteer photographer-blogger for the On the Tip of the Toes Foundation
Translated by Anna Tomczyk
In pictures
