IN THIS EMAIL:
 

- Learn about how ‘maas ol, the spirit bear, connects us to the last glacial maximum of the Pacific Northwest 

- Read about Quebec senator and former Paralympian Chantal Petitclerc's passion for skiing in Kananaskis, Alta.
- Discover more about Canada's aurora borealis and how these mesmerizing lights will fly farther south over the next 18 months

- Ready for your next adventure? Take a look at Banff Trail Riders' horseback riding adventure to the Allenby Pass!

Guardians of the glacial past

How ‘maas ol, the spirit bear, connects us to the last glacial maximum of the Pacific Northwest 

By Brett Huson with photography by Ryan Tidman

I was about five when I first first encountered ‘maas ol (white bear). I was in our community van on my way to nursery school when the driver pulled over on the side of the road and pointed out a white bear with a white cub. I was amazed to see this enigmatic being walking along the roadside foraging on huk (our word for cow parsnip, a plant the Gitxsan people enjoy as food and medicine). I was enthralled with this first encounter: little was known to the western world about these bears, so we never learned much about them in public schools. Typically, the stories, films and books revolved around black-coloured bears, brown bears and polar bears.

As a teenager, I heard stories about the white bear that showed me the importance of ‘maas ol to our cultures in the Pacific Northwest. This being was our connection to our lands before the last glacial maximum carved out the landscapes we know today. Many of the observations that coastal peoples made about the existence of ‘mass ol shaped the stories that, until recently, were deemed to be myths by the newcomers to these lands. 

Our Country: Chantal Petitclerc

The Quebec senator and former Paralympian on the joy of skiing in Kananaskis, Alta.
 

From 1991 to 1994, I had a chance to travel Alberta quite a bit when I did my university degree in Edmonton. One of the spots I still remember fondly, for many reasons, is Kananaskis. We used to go there whenever we had a chance. One of the reasons we discovered Kananaskis was that they had — and this was in the early 1990s — a fully wheelchair-friendly lodge and access to adapted cross-country ski equipment. At the time, this was groundbreaking because there weren’t really a lot of big conversations going on around inclusion, accessibility and equity.
 

When you are a wheelchair user who loves nature, the options are not always easy. There are obstacles and barriers. Kananaskis was one of my first experiences on my own with my skiing sticks and my muscles, and I could just go into nature. I have memories and photos of having to stop for bears or deer. I had this sense that I was on the wildlife’s turf — in their environment — and that’s why it was so, so, so precious.

The light stuff: Canada’s aurora borealis 
 

Shiny auroras will fly farther south over the next 18 months

By Elizabeth Howell with illustrations by Mary Sanche
 

Get ready for more shining lights in Canadian skies.
 

The beautiful northern lights, also known as the aurora borealis, will peak sometime in the next 18 months. While those of us living in the Far North of Canada see these night-sky lights on the regular, people who live farther south will soon get more opportunities as well.
 

Auroras are hard to predict, although you can get good forecasts from the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Auroras tend to cluster when the sun is more active, and it just so happens that the sun, which has an approximately 11-year cycle of activity, is heading into a period of peak solar activity, called a solar maximum. This active period clusters with phenomena like sunspots — dark blemishes on the surface of the sun that seethe with magnetic fields.

Canadian Geographic Adventures
 

And although you do climb to an elevation of 2,470 metres (8,100 feet) on this trip, the terrain is gentle for the entire way. And for all the rugged scenery that surrounds you on this trek, the adventure itself is far from ‘roughing it.’ Unwind in rustic luxury at the spacious Sundance Lodge and later at the cozy Halfway Lodge – both are quintessential mountain cabins boasting comfortable beds, a crackling fire and some of the most delicious backcountry cuisine you’ll ever try.

Get inspired!