Vancouver, Victoria youth camp and explore on Salt Spring Island

In terms of location, this Gulf Island was a perfect place to bring together both branches of the Power To Be tree. Once they were united in Long Harbour, the group of nine made their way to their weekend home at Garden Faire campground, just outside Ganges in the middle of the island.

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After travelling and setting up camp on Friday, the group set out to find some geocaches in Mouat Park and Ganges on Saturday morning. These were some tough searches, but the group was able to find three small caches in the forest with help from Vancouver’s “Lonesome George” GPS receiver. While the group moved from cache to cache, Power To Be leaders shared some ways to identify edible native berries (salmonberry, huckleberry and trailing blackberry) and trees (Douglas fir, cedar, and grand fir). These plant ID skills helped the group make sense of the hints attached to a few of the geocaches.

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With the morning spent hiking through the forest, the group headed to St. Mary’s Lake in the afternoon to cool off. The water was perfect, with all of the group wading, swimming and playing games together.

Saturday night stayed warm with clear skies, so the campers made their way to one of the many prime West Coast beaches to watch the sunset and to have a tasty treat. Watching beautiful skies, eating fondue and fruit, and hanging out with new friends ended up being the a trip highlight for many.

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Sunday morning dawned with an orange and smoky sky, and it was time for these campers to head out. Once the campsite was packed up, the group headed to Fulford Harbour and explored the village while waiting for the ferry. After one more beautiful ferry ride, the group said goodbye to their counterparts and headed back to the cities they call home.

– Story shared by Jeremy Field and Tracey Proverbs, Adaptive Recreation program facilitators