Three cheers for the GASP program!

Contributed by Brynn Hoskizaki, Glacier Adventure Stewardship Program program participant

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I know this is probably the cheesiest, most cliché opening line, but the 2018 Glacier Adventure Stewardship Program (GASP) trip to Rogers Pass was an experience that I will never forget. Spending time in the crisp fall outdoors, learning new skills, laughing lots with amazing people, and singing with new friends with an out-of-tune guitar are days I’m already nostalgic for. I should probably explain what exactly GASP is before I go any farther; GASP is a program put on by the North Columbia Environmental Society (NCES) and Parks Canada to give students the opportunity to explore the outdoors, then teach to others what we’ve learned through photography and stewardship.

Now, what exactly do we do on such a trip? Well first, we have a lot of fun. We also pick up some outdoor survival skills, such as using a GPS (we did some very competitive geocaching), what to do when we encounter a bear, and how to use a Whisper Lite stove properly (which almost resulted in the cabin being burnt down by yours truly). This year, we were extremely lucky to have professional photographer Amy Schultz, A.K.A. Chuckles, tag along, and give us a few tips on how to make the best of the scenery we had around us. She was a huge help, and really encouraged us to explore all angles of the photography world.

This year, we had five youth from Golden and twelve from Revelstoke on the excursion. Each day, we hit the trails bright and early, and had mountains of fun capturing each other in our pictures. On the second day of the trip, we did the all-day hike up to the Asulkan hut. Along the way, we had exploding shoes, cheeky alpine chipmunks, a few injuries, and head-dunking contests in glacier water (which seemed like a good idea until we got to the top), but we pushed through, and we were so happy that we did. It felt like being on top of the world. When we got back to the Wheeler Hut, we were fortunate enough to find out that we had some stunning singers in our group and a guitar was hanging on the wall. For our last night, we sat under the stars, talking about the amazing weekend we had, and listening to some exceptional music. No one wanted to leave the next day, so Leslie, one of our leaders, gave us a challenge. She told us to write a letter to our future selves, explaining the experience we had, the lessons we learned, and what we didn’t want to forget about this trip. I have to say, I’m quite excited to get my letter back in the spring. Forgetting any of this would be a crime.

I’d like to thank Parks Canada and NCES for such an inspiring opportunity, and thank you Leslie Hogg, Amy Schultz, Amy Clarke, Ross Horrelt, and Krista Patterson for being our incredible leaders on this expedition. Now, there were some spectacular photographers on this trip, and it would be wonderful if we could support their love for their hobby. There will be a viewing of the best photos taken on the trip for everyone to see at the art gallery starting October 26 at 6 p.m. Can’t wait to see you all there!