Blog #4: Winter Expedition Leg 1 - Uapishka Mountains Expedition - Feb 13-25, 2016

(Kendal)

L’esprit de Aventure Nomade :

(Hailey)

·      Formation a l’autonomie

·      Engagement physique

·      Partage des responsabilités

·      Longue durée, le temps d’apprendre

·      Pas de télécommunication

·      Pas de police d’assurances

·      On ne défie pas la nature…on s’y adapte, merci

Tu embarques, quand même ?

Tant mieux…

[“The spirit of a Nomad Adventure: Formation of independence, physical engagement, sharing of responsibility, long duration with time to learn, no telecommunication, no police assurances…One cannot defy nature…one can adapt. Do you want to go anyways? If so, all the better.”]

-Jacques Duhoux, Mountain Guide, Adventure Nomad Canada

Our group gathers by the Saint Lawrence River, en route to the Uapishka Mountains.

Sebi skis to camp with the winter tent in tow.

            On February 25^th, the Vermont Semester laid tracks down a final stream bed of freshly fallen white. We skied over snow-capped boulders, down waterfalls where the torrents had frozen and suspended in the form of icy ribbons, and around occasional patches where open water brought a musical flow to the silence. We arrived at the home of Jacques Duhoux, a friend of Kroka’s, a mountain guide, and a homesteader who has made life for more than thirty years at the base of the Uapishka Mountains. Jacques is now more than 80 years old but welcomed us outside his cabin, a smile shining on the face weathered and hardened with the wisdom of so many seasons in the mountains. We had made it: we were back home.

Winter camp set among the spruce.

            In the preceding thirteen days, we completed a 45-kilometer traverse of the eastern side of the Uapishka (Groulx) Mountains, traveling between the cabins of Jacques and Michel Denis (another friend and guide) from North to South. We carried heavy packs and skied in untouched powder up and down stream beds and the slopes of mountain plateaus. We set five winter camps along the way, packing snow, collecting and laying boughs, harvesting, bucking, and splitting firewood, carving blocks to build a snow wall, setting the winter tent, assembling the winter stove, and melting snow for water. We kept ourselves warm and our belongings dry as we traveled and we loaded the woodstove in the tent to burn through the night. We navigated the open terrain, matching topographic lines on the map to drainages and rises on the landscape. We sketched spruce and fir trees and fed whiskey jack birds from the palms of our hands. We sang from the tops of mountains in round and joined hands in a circle before meals in the evenings. Temperatures dipped to -40 degrees Celsius, and yet, we learned how as a community not only to live, but also to thrive. And, we returned home to Vermont, a safe group of sixteen, ready to journey on.

A whiskey jack (gray jay) eats a dehydrated apple out of Kendal's hand.

            Following is a story of our expedition, told as a weaving of journey entries, daily logs, sketching, and reflections (daily accounts written by Caleb).

Day 1: Pulling off the desolate highway above the 51st parallel, we stepped out of the van after 15 hours of driving to meet a temperature of -35° C. We strapped on our bags, slipped on our skis and started our journey.

“Being away from Modern Society was a welcome change. There was no rush all the time, no speeding cars, no advertisements blaring from every radio, and no hand-held devices sucking attention from the world around me. Here, life was simple.” - Hailey

The group cuts switchbacks up a mountain pass.

Day 3: In the morning we felt the wind and knew a change in the weather was coming. This morning was the bone-rattling cold at near -40°C. We sat up and could see the steam rising off each other’s bodies. After a bowl of kasha, we stepped out of the tent and gazed upward into a crystal clear, azure sky. It had been decided that we would bring our food up the stream and break camp tomorrow, bringing with us the rest of our gear. We skied up a frozen river through many feet of snow. At certain points we could hear the sound of water under the ice.

“Now we know what the true cold feels like. There are struggles and challenges on a whole new level, only amplified by the cold. However, none of us regret coming here for an instant. There is so much more to come.” - Caleb

Day 4: Today was stunning. Crystal clear skies accompanied our 5 km trek south into the mountain plateau. We continued to follow the river that led us to a notch. This was a passage between two mountains. Sparse, low trees dotted windswept tundra. We descended through the notch and down to a frozen lake, to our camp nestled at the northwest corner of lake Boissinot at 909 meters.

The group pauses for a photograph at the top of a mountain pass.

A wind-swept plateau.

Day 7: The storm from the last few days left us with 20 inches of fresh powder. We skied southward 5 km back to the plateau through frozen lakes and spruce forests and up a steep drainage, which forced us into tight switchbacks. Once at the top, we had our first panoramic view, which was simply breathtaking. To the north, the majestic snowcapped mountains rose tall; to the west, we could look out over endless evergreen forests; to the south and east, we looked down into the valley where we will camp tomorrow; beyond that, there lay more pristine mountains. We skied onwards, found a camp for the next day, and returned to camp as night fell.

“I reached the summit of Mont Veyrier, stretched out my arms, and shrieked at the top of my lungs, 'I’m on top of the world!' I looked out and there was nothing but blue sky above me. To the East was a powdery valley with a plateau on the other side. To the west was more of Mont Veyrier, then snowy tops of spruce and fir trees for as far as the eye could see. One lone squirrel raced across the snow, then back into the warmth of the ground. To think that we were two days away from experiencing this vast, breath-taking wilderness that left me awe-struck every day – I was truly experiencing a dream, and I couldn’t ask for a better dream.” – Claudia

The group skis up to the plateau.

Day 10: Today we ate breakfast as the sun was rising, broke camp, and ventured across Lac Joyel, the crown of the Groulx Mountains. Lac Joyel is 3 km long and is nestled into the high mountain plateau. Snow coated mountains rise up all around, and Mount Veyrier, the tallest of the Groulx Mountains looms high to the southeast. We skied the length of the lake and turned to head SW, skiing 6.5 km down into a valley and set camp just north of lake Magique.

We traveled with Homer's The Odyssey in our packs and on our minds. In the journey of Odysseus, we were able to reflect upon our own rites of passage. We each wrote an essay connecting the text to our own lives and experience.

Savannah in the winter tent during class.

“In my reading of The Odyssey, I have learned that a hero’s traits in ancient Greece are different than a hero’s traits today. In The Odyssey, a hero was viewed as an immortal on the battlefield with great skill in fighting. Today, a hero is viewed as a person who does not steal from others, but gives.” - Tanner

“I think the actions of Penelope are those of a strong woman, but not a totally loyal one. To me, loyalty does not follow logic. Penelope turning down the suitors is an action that would be loyal to Odysseus, even though it may not be the logical choice. I see loyalty as a direct commitment to a person or creature. I see myself as loyal to my family and I see my loyalty developing more this semester. I have a bind with this group and feel us growing more loyal to each other bit by bit.” – Bea

“Cunning Odysseus went, ... cloaked in the fine furs of marten and reindeer, the noble king began on foot, following the frozen roads of the wilderness. Here, young dawn rose late in the blessed day, and the great wheel in the sky stayed low and south, never warming his hardened face. As he climbed higher and higher into the tundra….a surge of strength pulsed through him, and with the last of his energy he plowed through the huge flows of billowing snow towards safety.” – Finn

Skiing among the spruce.

Day 12: It is our final day in the plateau. We broke camp and skied into the valley of lake Magique. We rounded a corner and headed due southwest up into the mountains for the final time. Wind whipped around us as we made a steep icy traverse with magnificent views. Saying goodbye to the mountains, we skied back down into the forest to find our final camp. Tomorrow will be the last day of our expedition in the Groulx Mountains.

Total distance: 45km

Total snowfall: 25”

Average morning temperature: -17°

Average evening temperature: -5°

“This epic adventure was nothing short of magical. True wilderness is very rare in our modern world, and it is here in this raw, untouched land that it is impossible not to feel an intimate connection to the natural world. Although struggles were many, they only brought our group closer and closer together.” – Caleb

(Julian)

Ready to descend from the Uapishka Mountains: on to the next step of the journey.