05/31/2021
SUMMER CAMP UPDATE: With heavy hearts, we officially announce that we are unable to run our Summer Camp this season. While we are grateful that camps may have the opportunity to open, there is still uncertainty in the weeks and months ahead. Provincial Guidance for Overnight Camps has determined guidelines that we are not able to meet due to the nature and type of programs we run. The main impediment is our inability to establish a cohort group for 14 days prior to departure on a Wilderness Canoe Trip. As all of our families know, this does not align with our program operations as we are not a residential camp and specialize in remote trips. We understand that there is good medical rationale for this guidance, and that developing a case of COVID-19, or worse, an outbreak amongst a group of trippers, presents a high risk due to the remote nature of our expeditions. This isn't a decision we've made lightly. Our youth desperately need nature-immersion therapy, deep connection with peers, and the mentorship of compassionate leaders who are not their parents! Furthermore, after last summer's break, we were finally going to celebrate OUR 25th PADDLEFOOT SUMMER with some incredible trips, which we know are the best medicine for "Pandemic Isolation Syndrome/Sickness" (as we call it- and you all know how much we love our acronyms here at PaddleFoot/WSS).
This said, we are still able to accommodate a small number of private groups and family groups this summer. Our greatest memories of 2020 are from our family trip up to Moosonee on the Missinaibi River; and one of the best memories of 2021 was hearing our teenagers tell us that our 2020 canoe trip was the best part of their Pandemic life. So we are planning another wilderness journey for our family this upcoming summer, and we hope you can find the same joyful escape with your loved ones! While on the river last summer, we were struck by the fact that although we had been cooped up under one roof for months, being out on the trail kindled a joy and energy amongst us that is rare; one that is found beyond where the roads extend, beside the campfire under a blanket of stars, at the end of a gruelling portage around waterfalls that can't be paddled, and in the bittersweet sadness of "take-out" when the journey is complete.
To all of our amazing campers, guides, alumnae, parents and community of support, we miss the great buzz of spring, the swelling excitement of this season, and the budding anticipation of the journey ahead that our campers undertake each year. Please keep in touch!
As many of you know, we have a branch of PaddleFoot that specializes is safety training, management and logistics for remote workplaces. With a staff who possess a ton of experience in these fields, we are fortunate that we are able to run many of our programs outside of Camp. We are supporting other camps in re-opening through planning and testing programs, running safety training courses, and working on projects in the TV industry that are able to operate. Thanks to our fantastic team, we have stayed afloat and paddling forward....albeit in a different direction than expected. Thank you to all of you for support and understanding through these Pandemic times - and as always, 'May you have the sun on your face, and the wind at your back' until we meet again.
Yours in adventure,
Robb and Sue Evis - and the PaddleFoot Family
