Back in 1991-92, my final year with the Scouts in Langley, B.C., my dad was our group leader. It didn't come naturally to him, and he already had lots on his plate with work, but he stepped up, and came up with a very enjoyable year.
Among the trips he arranged was a weekend at a cabin on beautiful Mount Seymour in the Vancouver area. Granted, having a dozen boys of that age in tight confines for a weekend likely isn’t the best thing for someone’s stress level.
I can’t believe he didn’t go bald that weekend. Or grey. If he would have driven off midway through the camp, muttering "life's too short," and left us to fend for ourselves, I wouldn't have blamed him.
(Okay, I exaggerate on the final point. But not by much).
But it was a pretty memorable camp. We learned some outdoor survival techniques. There was great scenery. Downhill skiing. And snowshoeing.
I’d never gone snowshoeing before. It was the last day of the camp. Of course, at that age, my focus was on whether we’d be done in time to catch the Vancouver Canucks’ game on the way home.
I don’t remember much about that snowshoeing expedition on the mountain. I remember people falling. A lot. I remember keeping tabs on how many times I’d fallen, and that it wasn’t very much, until late in our walk, when it seemed like I spent as much time on my back or my stomach as my two feet. Good experience, but not one that was high on my priority list for an encore.
Now, of course, I’d love to go snowshoeing on Mount Seymour, or anywhere else for that matter.
So when the Estevan Public Library started offering snowshoes to the public, it drew my attention. And this past Friday, I finally went for a walk on my own.
It should be noted that snowshoes have come a long ways in their design. Thirty years ago, they were that wooden design. I think most of us still have that visual in our mind. The ones that are available to be borrowed from the library are metal and a hard plastic design that are built for Saskatchewan conditions.
The biggest challenge for me was getting them on properly. Frankly, I’m not sure if I actually had them on right. Perhaps I should have watched a YouTube video on how to properly put on snowshoes before heading out.
You can’t expect the library to put the shoes on for you; they have better things to do. You also can’t wear them indoors, because they’ll scuff up the flooring in a heartbeat.
I also can’t be sure I was walking right. Are you supposed to shuffle or march when wearing them? Regardless, I could hear the dragging sounds behind me throughout the walk.
I didn’t go far, just from the leisure centre to the exhibition association’s rodeo arena and back. It wasn’t the best of conditions for snowshoeing – we’d had been through the thaw and freeze cycle for the past few days, and it was a cold day on Friday, so there was a lot of frozen slush to contend with.
I think it would have been a better experience if it was -5 C, and I was walking through 10 centimetres of new, fluffy snow. I can see taking a nice long walk on one of our new pathways, such as the one in northeast Estevan.
But the good news is I didn’t have any faceplants, and I didn’t have a damage cost.
This is another example of an organization that has rethought the services it offers the community over the past couple of years. You wouldn’t necessarily associate snowshoeing with the library, but that’s why the library’s slogan is “Not the Library you Remember.” They’ve done a pretty good job of diversifying their offerings to the community.
And it is a natural activity for Estevan with the relatively flat terrain. It’s great exercise. It’s something the family can do together. And it’s an activity that can happen regardless of the COVID-19 restrictions.
This week’s edition of the Mercury features our annual 101 Things to Do in Estevan this Winter special publication. You’ll find all sorts of ideas for great winter fun, including borrowing snowshoes from the library. Winter’s almost over, but there is still time to enjoy so many activities in the area, whether it be outdoors on snowshoes, or indoors enjoying activities.
I’ve been able to enjoy a few of them. I hope you will too.
Thankfully “Laugh at the Mercury editor after he falls on his arse when using snowshoes” did not make the list.
