ATHABASCA – A week-long journey came to an end July 13, after the 150 or so paddlers that made up this year’s canoe brigade came ashore at the Athabasca riverfront.
Waiting to greet them were friends, family, and local dignitaries including Athabasca-Barrhead-Westlock MLA Glenn van Dijken, Athabasca County reeve Brian Hall, and Town of Athabasca Coun. Edie Yuill, who was filling in for mayor Rob Balay.
The journey, which saw the paddlers travel 343 kilometres over six days, was described by some, including Athabasca County councillor Kelly Chamzuk, as a “lifechanging experience.” For others, including the members of the Canadian Voyageur Brigade Society (CVBS), it was another opportunity to celebrate a legacy that they hold dear to their hearts.
“This is what they (CVBS) live for, they love the challenge,” said Chamzuk, who completed the journey with her oldest daughter Holly.
Chamzuk, who started the journey at Fort Assiniboine, said in a July 14 interview that the brigade was made up of people from all over Canada, with a few Americans mixed in as well.
“There really were people from all walks of life out there on the water,” she added.
Chamzuk said she was blown away by the experience; outside of a few months of tandem canoeing to try and mitigate her injury risk, the councillor said this was her first real experience with anything like this.
“There was a really great respect for nature, just being out on the water. Being able to go down this magnificent beast of a river, with some of the most experienced people ever, it was a little bit life changing,” said Chamzuk.
There was one moment that stood out to her above the others, and solidified part of the relationship between today’s adventurers, and those who came before.
“There was one moment that really touched my heart, there was a young man that was singing an Indigenous song. It was pure silence out there, and all you could hear were the paddles dipping into the water, and the song,” said Chamzuk. “It really made me think about the past, and how hard it would have been to go down these rivers, navigating them without having been down them before.”
van Dijken, who had previously welcomed the brigade into Fort Assiniboine July 8, said that was proud to be able to welcome them home in a different part of his constituency.
“I hope you were able to really take in and enjoy your journey along the Athabasca River. It’s a beautiful part of our province, and I really commend you on the effort that went into organizing, but also completing the trek from Whitecourt to Athabasca,” said van Dijken. “Congratulations on a job well done, you should be commended. It’s also an adventure, one that voyageurs were able to participate in what today is part of our history but was a normal lifestyle for many going back hundreds of years.”
Even for experienced solo and tandem paddlers, like Town of Athabasca Coun. Ida Edwards, voyageur canoes can be a bit of a challenge to get used to.
“My biggest lesson in the canoes was teamwork and knowing your position; I normally go out solo, but these canoes are bigger, heavier, and they require a team to work together,” said Edwards. “I really appreciated the patience of the bow and stern positions who were experienced as they got us settled in.”
Nowhere was that teamwork more apparent than when the modern-day voyageurs had to “switch,” where they swap sides of the canoe to more evenly distribute the workload throughout their body.
“The first couple of times we did it, it was very rocky and slightly terrifying, but it goes into a ‘Oh we got this!’ type of thing pretty quickly,” said Edwards.
Like Chamzuk, Edwards said that the experience gave her a new-found appreciation for the challenges faced by those that came before.
“I would say it more enhanced my impression and appreciation for the past. I have a new appreciation for the challenges that our predecessor’s faced. The voyageurs came into this area and relied on Indigenous knowledge and guides to get them where they needed to go,” said Edwards. “It makes me appreciate our Indigenous cultures that have worked in these areas for thousands of years, and sustained viable livelihoods here. It’s not the same now, but up through the voyageur period, people lived and worked here in a similar manner.”
