Get into the great outdoors with UCFV this winter

 Whether you like backcountry snowboarding or sitting in a cosy chair hearing about other people's outdoor adventures, UCFV has several outdoor-themed events on offer this winter.

All are a presentation of UCFV's Adventure Tourism program, a partnership of the university college and the Career Technical Centre that provides an opportunity for young people to learn and develop skills in wilderness-based adventure, as well as the skills needed to work in positions of leadership.

The Best of the Banff Film Festival

Once again the students of the Career Technical Centre's Adventure Tourism program are pleased to invite you and your friends to an evening of fine films of outdoor recreation, mountain culture and wilderness adventure on Monday, November 26. Films start at 7:30 p.m. at the Clarke Foundation Theatre in the Heritage Park Centre in Mission (33700 Prentis Avenue).

Tickets are $13 (buy 10 and get one free). They are available at the Mission Pharmasave; Little Mountain Outdoor store, UCFV bookstore, and Western Canoe in Abbotsford; and the UCFV Theatre box office in Chilliwack. Proceeds from the Best of the Banff Festival go toward the continuing development of the Adventure Tourism program.

The Film Festival Outdoor Adventure Trade Show

This year's festival will also include a mini trade show in the lobby of the Clarke Foundation Theatre. Come and meet some of the individuals involved in various aspects of outdoor recreation in our community.

Wilderness Adventure series

This is a series of three presentations by outdoor adventurers at UCFV's Abbotsford campus lecture theatre.

A solo journey through the Arctic
Tues, Dec 4 at 7:30 p.m.
Maple Ridge photographer Paul vanPeenen spent two months travelling over 1,000 km following the 1821 route of the Franklin expedition in Canada's Arctic this year. He hiked, paddled, and portaged on the Winter River and across many lakes into the Coppermine River, resupplied, then paddled another 450 km along the Arctic Ocean's Coronation Gulf and Bathurst Inlet, finishing at the mouth of the Hood River.

Land of the Ice Bear
Fri, Jan 21 at 7:30 p.m.
Explore Canada's Devon Island and walk on the wild side with modern-day explorer Chris Cooper.

An evening with Robert Perkins
Wed, Jan 30 at 7:30 p.m.
(More details to be available at a later date).

All shows at UCFV Abbotsford Lecture theatre (B101.) Tickets: $6 in advance; $8 at door. Available at: Western Canoe & Kayak, Little Mountain Outdoors, UCFV Bookstore, and Mission Pharmasave.

Avalanche Awareness courses

Are you planning to travel in the back country this winter? Before you go, ask yourself these questions: Am I aware of the dangers of avalanches? Can I recognize which slopes are safe, and which are not? Do I know how to use avalanche safety equipment?

In order to enjoy the environment and remain safe in the back country, to make good decision about where and when to go, UCFV is offering avalanche awareness courses, endorsed by the Canadian Avalanche Association. Choose from one of the following two session courses: December 8 & 9, 2001; January 26 & 27, 2002; February 16 & 17, 2002; March 9 & 10, 2002. The cost is $200.

For more information on all these events, call Roger Friesen at 604-504-7441, local 4297. 

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