Most newly minted high school graduates might take the summer off to catch their breath.
Not Port Moody's Saskia Vaisey.
Instead, the 19-year-old Gleneagle secondary alum will embark on a 2,200-km journey from Vancouver to Inuvik, N.W.T. - on her bicycle.
It's an uncharted path for the slim-built teen who hasn't strayed beyond the PoCo Trail on her bike.
Vaisey and three teammates will ride 100 km a day starting on Vancouver Island Aug. 1. Once they reach the northern tip of the Island, at Port Hardy, they will catch a ferry to Prince Rupert, and then another to Skagway, Alaska.
"Well, it's a really big challenge," says Vaisey. "I've certainly never cycled so many days in a row."
She will have no cellphone reception for most of the trip. Being immersed in some of the most beautiful and remote wilderness scenery in North America is the consolation for losing her connection to the outside world.
The infamous and isolated Dempster Highway - a 1,253-km gravel road connecting Whitehorse to Inuvik - will be a test of self-reliance for the group. At night, they will set up a camp, where the culinary offerings will be limited to whatever they could carry from Vancouver on their backs.
When The Tri-City News caught up with Vaisey recently, she was dehydrating a mix of colourful fruits and vegetables into pellets. One of her teammates is compressing chilli in the same fashion.
"It won't be the most delicious [food], but it will be light," smiles Vaisey.
CLIMATE CHANGE
Vaisey belongs to GrassRoutes, a non-profit organization that uses biking to promote social change.
"I like the concept that combines pushing your physical limits with environmental advocacy while engaging youth," Vaisey said. "We are transporting ourselves with the power of our own legs - it makes the message especially powerful."
Last summer, the group cycled across Canada, raising $14,684 for youth environmental projects and hosting 22 leadership workshops for Canadian students. This spring, members trekked across Turkey and talked environmental sustainability with another 975 students.
GrassRoutes attracts environmental ambassadors from all corners of the world.
The quartet journeying to the midnight sun in August have home bases in Montreal, California, Powell River and Port Moody. Through online conferencing, they developed an itinerary for their expedition. Along the way to Inuvik, the GrassRoutes group will hold sustainability workshops, teach bike repair lessons and film a short video documentary.
"The purpose of this project is to build dialogue between [Canadians] in the north and south around climate change while empowering youth with tools to take action," Vaisey explained.
Mapping meals - essentially tracking where their food comes from - will be an eye-opener for youth living in northern communities.
Food gathering through traditional seal and game hunting has been hindered by climate change, said Vaisey. More pre-packaged meals, which can fall short in nutritional content, are being brought into the area by truck.
Vaisey will be well versed on the Arctic way of life ahead of her August trip. The scholarship she won through Students on Ice Expeditions will see her exploring the eastern Canadian Arctic and western Greenland for two weeks in July.
The ship- and land-based journey will offer Vaisey an opportunity to learn from scientists and historians about Arctic issues, the impact of climate change and Inuit culture in a remote setting. "I think the north doesn't enter our radar very often," she said.
GREEN ROOTS
For Vaisey, growing up in a forested area has made her more appreciative of Port Moody's natural splendour. She volunteers at the salmon hatchery in Mossom Creek Park and worries about the future sale of the Ioco lands and potential new development.
"I don't think development in itself is bad but we need to do it in an environmentally sustainable way and make sure delicate ecosystems are protected," she said.
Her environmental activism model has two focuses: make direct change yourself and inspire other people to make change.
That's where her work with the Catching the Spirit Youth Society comes into play. The non-profit organization - dedicated to developing leadership and social responsibility in youth - holds stewardship camps in parks for 12- to 18-year-olds.
One of the biggest challenges we face, living in an urban setting, she said, is that children don't get outside enough.
"Once they experience the parks, they will value the environment and want to protect it, and become stewards of the environment."
In September, Vaisey will study international economics at UBC, and possibly minor in geography studies, with the end goal of a career in international policy.
"I think it's important to understand the global economy first in order to create environmental solutions," she says.
