Vive la France!

It sits comfortably in the main cabin of the Alpine Club of Canmore, Alberta, in front of the majestic and famous 3 Sisters that I begin writing of this story. It will be about the 10 days experienced by 13 young people between 19 and 29 years old in the Canadian Rockies. For many of you, these 10 days of July 2018 will probably be similar to other days of the year, but for these young people, I do believe that they will be unforgettable.

The adventure began Saturday, July 14 in Saguenay where Marie-Michelle, Chief Organizer of the expedition, is busy loading the equipment for the group with Marie-Eve, Aurelie and Cindy. I join them then for the departure. Our first stop: the Sainte-Foy bus terminal to pick Mario, Co-Founder of the On the Tip of the Toes Foundation. Already chemistry settles in. It is a pleasure to have Marc-André Galbrand, a former member of the Foundation team, join us for dinner.

Arriving at the hotel, the girls have fun in the water games for kids, yet forbidden to adults. We hear that it was an amazing experience! A few hours later, Julie, Vincent, Myriam and Janny join us for supper.

We head to the airport at 5:20 am this morning. Boarding is scheduled for 8:20. Arnaud, Jessy, Jemmy, Mika and Youssef join us. Despite the time we had ahead of us, we boarded the plane just in time, because the check-in was very long and the luggage inspection was particularly intense.

The flight to Calgary is going very well, except for a few minutes of turbulence announced by the pilot whose voice is so fast, dull and nasal that it gives us the impression that it is always the same pilot who is in command of all planes. For the rest of the flight, clear skies allowed us to admire the country’s great territory, except for Arnaud who kept his hoody over his face all along. He woke up for a moment when the flight attendant announced that the French team had won second World Cup in 20 years. Let’s bet that his night was short.

Once in Calgary, Steph, Leo, Simon and Larissa join us. Finally, the group is complete. Olivier, our guide for the whole journey, welcomes us and brings us to the Canmore Alpine Club where we will spend the first three nights. The rooms at this hostel are very welcoming, the beds are comfortable and the view from the balcony is breathtaking. This is where official presentations are made. First impressions are unanimous; everyone is happy and very excited to be part of the adventure. For the majority, it will be a first experience in the Rockies which makes the group fretful, but also very enthusiastic.

After supper, our leaders Marie-Michelle and Mario present the challenges that await the group without frightening anyone. Everything is more than anything based on cautiousness, safety and prevention. Mario brings the group to think about the adventure’s great mission, to get to feel comfortable in three specific areas: the relationship with others (human area), the relationship with the environment (nature area) and the relationship with activities (physical area). The sequence is planned so that each zone is tamed smoothly allowing each member of the group to find its own comfort, while respecting that of others.

Seeing and hearing everyone chat while playing the dice—what a good idea Jessy had to bring them—this first day ends with the impression that this group had set a date to meet. It’s as everyone has known each other for a long time.

The departure is scheduled for tomorrow 8 am. On the menu: rock climbing.

Nicolas Tremblay, Blogger and Photographer for On the Tip of the Toes Foundation