A group of young hikers, 11 from Austria and three Canadians, took part in an expedition through some remote coastal backcountry between the lower Sunshine Coast and Powell River earlier this month.
Parts of the 112 kilometre distance and 4,500 metres of elevation through the mountains from Port Mellon to Powell River were previously untravelled routes, according to organizer George Elsbett, a Catholic priest with family ties to Powell River.
“The first part of the journey from Gibsons to Narrows Inlet had not been done before,” he said.
The trip was organized by Adventure and Faith, a project of the John Paul II Center in Vienna, Austria, where Elsbett is based. Born in London and raised throughout parts of B.C. and Alberta, he was ordained in 2003. Elsbett’s parents, Max and Gerlinde, now live in Wildwood.
Elsbett said taking groups on wilderness adventures is a great way to teach important life lessons and about faith.
“The mission of Adventure and Faith is to inspire and empower people through adventure and community experiences, to become the best version of themselves and positively transform the world,” he added.
The group previously completed a trek in BC in 2017, when they successfully traversed the route of the proposed Third Crossing from Squamish to Powell River.
“In our previous travels, we have seen many times how the wilderness catapults us out of our comfort zone and thus creates a prerequisite for personal growth,” Elsbett said.
This year’s trek was named the Valentin Alge Trail in honour of an Austrian mountaineer friend of Elsbett who died in a mountaineering accident last year.
Although the expedition was strategically planned to take in what is often some of the best weather of the year on the coast, they ended up experiencing rain and foggy conditions for much of their travels. However, the scenery was still breathtaking, according to Austrian participant Beatrice Lederbur, a primary school teacher and competitive boxer.
“It’s just such a beautiful country,” she said. “Even if it’s raining.”
The group soon bonded through their unique shared experience, said Max Krecu, a physician from Salzburg, Austria, who served as the doctor on the trip.
“What was the most interesting was to see how we worked together as a group without knowing each other before,” he added. “We got to know each other very closely within days.”
Through the rain and often steep, slippery inclines with 25 to 30 kilogram packs on their backs, teamwork was essential for survival and morale.
“You have to work together; it’s crucial that you do that,” said Krecu. “Serving the group can also mean stepping back from your own goals and accepting help from others.”
The group documented their travels with the help of GoPros, a camcorder and two drones. They plan to release a documentary film on this year’s trek in the spring of 2020.
