Sustainability
Incorporate environmental awareness and sustainability into outdoor and business practices.
At the beginning of my third semester in the Outdoor Adventure program, in September 2023, I took part in a 9-day sea kayak expedition in the Georgian Bay Area in Ontario. The course focused on improving sea kayaking skills, Leave No Trace practices, open water hazards, lake and river environments, navigation, marine charts, land and water group management, and ecological interpretation. It was a great opportunity to incorporate environmental awareness and sustainability into outdoor and business practices. It was also how I earned my Leave No Trace Master Educator certification.
We spent 9 days backcountry camping between Britt, ON and Killarney Provincial Park. We followed the 7 principles by:
planning ahead and preparing – we planned to only stay on islands large enough to accommodate 10 people.
traveling and camping on durable surfaces – we only set up camp on durable rock surfaced in order to not erode moss and soil.
disposing of waste properly – we collected all our garbage to dispose of after the expedition and made sure to use cat-holes for human waste.
leaving what we found – we left our campsites and lunch spots as we found them, or better.
minimizing campfire impacts – when we had campfires we made sure to only use twigs and branches (no bigger than wrist width) from the ground. We also made sure to only use existing campfire setups.
respecting wildlife – we made sure to keep our distance from wildlife. At one point we saw a bear ahead of us swimming from one island to another. We made sure to stay back to avoid disturbing the bear.
being considerate of others – we made sure to avoid having lunch breaks or setting up campsites too close to other paddlers in the area.
As a part of this expedition we were given the chance to do a short presentation in order to earn the Leave No Trace Master Educator certification. Through these presentation I learned more about making sustainable campfires, about camping on sustainable surfaces, about how to dispose of waste properly, and about respecting wildlife. Kia and I presented about how to plan ahead and prepare for a more sustainable sea kayak expedition. See the photos of my sea kayak expedition group, both taken on Silver Island.