The Adventure in Understanding, an initiative by the Rotary Club of Peterborough Kawartha, commenced its journey in 2014. It briefly paused during the COVID pandemic and resumed on August 27, 2023.
In collaboration with Curve Lake First Nation, Camp Kawartha, and the Canadian Canoe Museum, a group of 20 high school students from 12 communities in Ontario, British Columbia, and Japan, along with five leaders, embarked on a six-day canoeing expedition. Their journey commenced at Beavermead Park and took them along the historic Lift Lock, paddling through the Trent Severn Waterway until they reached Curve Lake Pow Wow Grounds.
This year’s expedition held a unique significance as one of the paddles used had found its way back to its place of origin. Originally crafted in Curve Lake many years ago, the paddle had been purchased by Dorianna Chessa, a land-based educator at the Salt Spring Island School Board in British Columbia. After learning about the Adventure in Understanding in Peterborough, Dorianna reached out to Don Watkins, Chair of the Adventure in Understanding, to learn more. Driven by her deep interest, she expressed a desire to initiate a similar project in the Cowichan Nation and was graciously invited to join this year’s trip, accompanied by a former student with Ojibwe ancestry.
As the adventure unfolds, a paddle finds its way back to its ancestral home, Curve Lake First Nation, along the “Ancient Highway” of this region.”
Paddles Up! Safe journey.