Calgary to Oyen, Alberta

May 1st to May 16th

The team met up in Calgary on May 1st and headed to Kamp Kiwanis for training week.  The week consisted of team building activities and workshops on consensus decision-making, public speaking, anti-oppression, bike maintenance, examining Prairie issues, theatre games, leading workshops, meeting facilitation, sharing our hopes and fears, and developing a food policy for the group.  We also took on roles within the Otesha skit that is a component of our school presentations.

Midway through training week everyone felt thrilled to be a part of a team of inspiring, intelligent, dedicated, passionate and hard working young people.  It did not take long for a family feeling to develop amongst us.

Our first ride was through heavy traffic from Kamp Kiwanis to Calgary.  While in Calgary we performed our first presentation to the Prairie Sky co-housing community and enjoyed the hospitality of Mark Leigh's family.  Hosting 17 cyclists in one house is quite the undertaking and it was much appreciated!

From Calgary we cycled along bike paths to Strathmore to present to some Katimavik groups and then through the badlands to Drumheller. 

Cycling through craggy dinosaur country was stunning.  Our next presentation was at the school in Morin Alberta, a small, isolated
town of approx. 300.   From Morin to Hanna we cycled along a straight road under sunny skies.

Saturday May 14th marked the most memorable ride so far and certainly the most challenging.   Our original route plan involved stopping and presenting in Youngstown and Chinook; with these two stop the ride would have been broken into three short rides.  But, with recent elevator shutdowns, it turns out the both Chinook and Youngstown are virtually ghost towns.  So our plan was to bike from Hanna to Oyen, over 110km.   Now 110km is a manageable distance for a day, until you add a strong headwind into the mix.  The road turned and veered somewhat but never enough to get a tailwind; it was either straight on
or somewhat to our side.

Even when going down a slight hill one still had to pedal to battle the wind. After the first hour I felt as tired as I usually do at the end of a full day of cycling.   Half the team made it to Oyen (some pulling in after dark) and others found a safe place to camp between near Chinook.  Luckily, the next day was a day-off, allowing everyone to reach Oyen and to rest after the long battle against the wind.  We also had access to showers for the first time in a few days; needless to say, these were a welcome sight!
The community of Oyen has treated us very well.  The students and teachers have been very receptive, the grocery stores donated generously, and the parents cooked a huge potluck lunch for us (with lots of chocolatey desserts!).  Last night was our first experience with rain but our tents remained dry and our spirits remained high.

All in all I have only good news to report from the Prairies tour.  We are all learning lots, exploring new places and having fun.


written by Anne Thomson