Stories From Strathcona

At 6:30am on September 24, the grade 10s left Vancouver for Strathcona Park Lodge in Campbell River on Vancouver Island. After an exhausting five-hour bus and ferry trip, we arrived at the camp—and were met with great weather. Soon after, some students left on their trips, which included kayaking and river canoeing, while others settled in the comfy lodges.

Before long, the river canoeists were already at the campsite. By the time they had set up their tarps for the night, the sun had set and the moon was shining. Meanwhile, other groups were packing the gear for their trips, which included hiking up Mount Myra, canoeing on the coastal Burman River, or canoeing and hiking along Upper Campbell Lake. After a sound sleep, all groups began their main activities, either hiking up a mountain or learning the basic canoeing and kayaking strokes.

With the sun blazing, all students learned an important lesson: sunscreen (and bug spray!) is essential for a 13-hour canoe/kayak trip, particularly amidst a cloudless sky. Once the sun had set, everyone enjoyed smores and popcorn by the campfire.

After a tiring and backbreaking couple of days, all students met at the main lodge campfire and presented a skit or story about the trip. Stories (true or not!) were exchanged and good memories were made. On September 28, tired bodies snored their way back to Vancouver. The shoulder aches, the bug bites, the sunburns . . . all were overshadowed by lasting fun memories.

Thanks to Ms. Logher, Mr. Thomas, Ms. Brenko, Mr. Bendl, Mr. Short, J.F. and Aaron for guiding us on these trips!