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[““You can’t have a set plan up here,” said Jocelyn McDonald, owner of Peak Wyld Co., an adventure company based in Fort Nelson in Northeast B.C. “A beginner might find that hard — it’ll be a reality check. But I tell people that if you have two feet, I can get you there.”
McDonald is one of a growing number of women guiding trips through the backcountry, continuing a long tradition of women spearheading the industry. Since the early 1900s, women have been at the forefront of hiking and mountaineering culture in Canada.”]
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[“Among the many famous Canadian female explorers was Caroline Hinman, who started one of the first touring companies in the Canadian Rockies called Off the Beaten Track in 1913.
“She decided that it would be really cool if young women could come and experience this amazing place in a safe and accessible way,” said Kate Riordon, research archivist at The Whyte Museum in Banff, Alta. A page from Hinman’s travel scrapbook is pictured on the left.
She wasn’t a certified guide – mountaineering associations such as the Alpine Club of Canada didn’t allow women to be guides until the late 20th century – but for 25 years she led groups of young women through the rugged mountains.”]
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[“As of 2019, the number of female certified guides in Canada was still low. A national study conducted on behalf of the Association of Canadian Mountain Guides, the Canadian Avalanche Association and the Canadian Ski Guides Association put the industry at approximately 15 per cent to 20 per cent female.
But those stats don’t necessarily represent the reality on the ground. McDonald has been guiding for over 10 years, and she’s working on obtaining a full certification with the Association of Canadian Mountain Guides, known as ACMG. The process is grueling and takes several years.”]
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[“Once a year, McDonald leads a group of roughly 17 women on a week-long hike into Wokkpash Lake in Stone Mountain Provincial Park. “There’s no cell service, so you actually have to talk and spend time together,” she said. “It’s very group-oriented.””]
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[“Guiding is an integral part of who McDonald is. When her son, Wylder, was 18 months old, she started taking him on trips with her.
“Your baby’s gonna be crying either way,” McDonald said. “At home or out in the woods with you.”
She organized a child-friendly hike as a test, bringing her mother-in-law and niece for support. It was a huge hit, and she’s since made kid-friendly hikes a regular part of her programming. Wylder, now 4, works as her assistant guide.”]
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[“Another lesson shows survivalists how household items like dryer lint and vaseline can be used to create firestarters for their kit. “If I’m going to be two hours away from civilization, I’m bringing a survival kit,” said Rock. “But there’s really no point in packing a kit full of stuff that you don’t know how to use.””]
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[“Rock used to be a personal trainer. When the pandemic closed the gym where she worked, she created an outdoor exercise regimen for scaling a local mountain. “That became insanely popular,” she said. ”I thought, ‘I should probably become a guide if I’m taking people on these hikes.’” When gyms reopened, she didn’t go back.”]
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[“It also allows Joy, who’s still getting back into shape after having their daughter Aurora, to bring clients directly to trailheads instead of hiking in. “After you have a baby, it’s really hard to recover physically to do such demanding work,” she said.”]
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Soon after, she was approached by another woman eager to share all of the club’s social media pages and events with her.”]
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