Adventurous JourneyPresentation

for the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award – Silver by Aiden Macdonald

Preliminary TrainingAs a Group Youth Commissioner and a member of Scouts

Canada for 10 years, I have acquired several skills, as well I have received and

taught training courses in many areas. For this, I helped our Advisor set-up an 8 hour refresher course for our Adventurous Journey group that

was held on July 15th, 2014.

Refresher course included: Emergency Preparedness & Survival training First Aid Map, Compass and GPS training Campfire safety “Wilderness Code of Behaviour” training Food-Safe basic training Proper and safe use of camping equipment Light-weight camp/hike training The importance of campsite selection

Our Practice Journey When did you go?

July 19th & 20th, 2014

Where did you go? We went to Chilliwack Lake Provincial

Campground for our practice journey. Our 6 km hike took us to Lindeman Lake where we set up our one night camp to return the next day.

What did you do? Before and during our Practice

Journey, we rehearsed what we had discussed at our Preliminary Training update plus specific additional topics such as: Bear Safety What to do in a Thunder Storm Light weight cooking & food preparation Route plan analysis for our Qualifying Journey How to use our new GPS Appropriate Clothing for the forecast

Our Practice Journey Cont.How did this prepare you for

the Qualifying Journey? Our discussions during our

practice journey greatly helped us plan for any situation that may occur during our Qualifying Journey.

The knowledge and discussion of what to do during a lightning storm helped us as we did in fact face a lightning storm. It also helped gauge the physical fitness limits and pace of the group as a whole.

Base CampAt our base camp, situated at the bottom of

the mountain, we organized and rationed all our food and supplies prior to setting out.

EquipmentPersonal Equipment

Sleeping Bag Rain Gear Dry Clothes Extra Socks and Shoes A water bottle/cup A Hat Odorless personal

sundries & sunscreen Backpack Flashlight & Batteries

Group Equipment Lightweight Tents Food 30 ft of light cord First-Aid Kit Butane Gas canisters 2 Single Burner stoves Matches & a Flintstone Laminated Maps GPS and Compass 1 Tarp 1 Kettle 1 Pot 1 Lifestraw (water filtering system)

Day 1 – Start of our Journey!We were excited to begin

our journey through the flora lake trail! Hit the Trail at 7 AM Terrain was Steep and

Rugged We saw amazing scenery

and wildlife We travelled about 14 km to

Flora Lake on Day 1 We set up camp about 6 PM

Day 1 Part 2The hike was tiring because

it was up hill, but we were making progress.

We slowly made our way up the mountain. As we continued it began getting increasingly steep.

We saw snow caps and a single deer

The weather had been very bright, but as we travelled up it began getting more misty.

Day 1 Part 3 Our first check point! Time

for some rest.This area just short of half

way up the mountain, but it appeared to be quite high.

Here, we took several pictures and had a couple snacks.

Some of us began feeling fatigue in our legs, but this rest period immensely restored our energy for the soon to be even a more uphill battle.

Day 1 Part 4Nearing the topThis area is very significant

for the absolute thirst we felt.

As the sun shined bright, our water had began running low, so we had to rely on natural water sources as we hiked.

We planned a visit to a stream of fresh cold mountain water to refill our water bottles.

Day 1 Part 5Reached the Summit! At the highest point we

reached while on the trail, a sense of relief for sure, as we realized that there would be no more uphill treks.

The air had been damp and cool, but the incredible amount of mosquitoes did not allow us to enjoy the weather!

Day 1 Part 6Time to go downhill! The trail became muddy.The downhill trek went

quite quickly and was a lot of fun. Although the drizzle and water trickling down the mountain had made the trail down more difficult and muddy, we were able to get to Flora lake on schedule.

Day 1 Part 7Finally we had arrived at Flora

Lake!The lake beautiful. Green and

see through, the reflection of the trees created a beautiful landscape.

The sun shined on the mountains to create a contrast to the dark lake.

We began unpacking our equipment and setting up camp.

The mosquitoes were extremely thick.

Day 1 Part 8Tent up, time to rest

after our 14 kilometer hike to Flora Lake!

Time for some dinnerAnd then time to sleep,

we all needed our rest

Day 2Breakfast time!Relaxation day. We

decided to rest for the entire day after the hike from the first. We played cards and chatted for the day, as well as planned out the rest of the trip.

We all took a shower

Day 3 Part 1Time to get on the

trail again.Broke camp at 8 AM

and headed north west toward Greendrop Lake

The rain subsided a little from time to time, but then poured at other times.

Day 3 Part 2A boulder path, a

landslide had covered the path some years earlier.

As soon as we started into the trail, a thunderstorm began.

The rocks were slippery in the rain so we took it slowly!

Day 3 Part 3Partway through the

trail, a little break for noodles in the rain.

We set up a tarp shelter, just to get a break from the rain.

We were getting very wet.

Even the best gear was no match for this rain.

Day 3 Part 4Even more boulder

paths!There were several of

these boulder paths throughout the trail to Greendrop Lake. Over time we began getting quite well at maneuvering through them.

Day 3 Part 5 Pictured is an area where we

became confused as a recent landslide had covered the path, but our training was good and Greendrop was upon us.

We arrived and set up camp at Greendrop Lake at 4 PM.

Met up with the Park Ranger who was hiking the opposite direction (first human contact in almost two days).

Hoped the rains would let up, but they only became worse as the night went on.

Needed to secure a lightening safe space for the tents and tarp shelter.

Dinner, a game of cards and bed was the only agenda.

Day 4 – Return to base camp The wet had definitely gotten

the better of our patience and gear

Even though the rain had subsided by morning, our gear was a lot heavier for the last leg of our Journey.

We packed up camp at 9 AM and continued our hike past Lindeman Lake, where we had been a few days earlier, to the base camp at Chilliwack Lake Provincial Campground

Arrived back at the base camp at 2:45 PM in time for a late Lunch which our Advisor had ready for us.

Unpacking and drying the equipment took a lot more time than anticipated.