This is such a sweet little conversation, a fleeting moment in time: a dog and a person mirroring each other in beautiful symmetry - a photo impossible to "stage" - only possible to capture.
Monday, July 29, 2013
Who do you see in the mirror?
This is such a sweet little conversation, a fleeting moment in time: a dog and a person mirroring each other in beautiful symmetry - a photo impossible to "stage" - only possible to capture.
Thursday, July 25, 2013
Modeling photo shoot
Tala Rain and Twillow Rose are two young therapy dogs; both Shiloh Shepherds. Both stunningly beautiful dogs. Their owner and "co-therapist" Straja was one of the people who replied and graciously offered to participate when I put out a Model call a few weeks back.
I had met Straja and Twillow before and I knew I would be in for a treat to be taking photos of them together!
We spent a couple of hours together, initially in the studio, and then going outside - having a great time.
These shots are just a first few in a series of images of these lovely, lovely souls.
Dogs have come to mean So much in my own life; and knowing what that magical bond can feel like - I LOVED photographing Straja with her dogs! The bond is tangible :-) just gorgeous.
Capturing the connection between people and their beloved companion dogs is truly an honour and something I hope to be doing much, more more of in the months and years to come. Stay tuned as I share some more images soon from the two model shoots in the last month!
And PS - If you'd like to take part in a model shoot in the future or want to be kept in the loop about upcoming photo projects or specials - please DO sign up for Wags' newsletter here.
Monday, July 22, 2013
Day-hike with the family and dogs
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| Pinot and Maggio enjoying a small dip, and cool-off in one of the cold streams we encountered. |
Short synopsis of the day:
Through Larch Valley to Sentinel Pass, over Sentinel Pass into Paradise Valley, down to Lake Annette and through the forests down to the Moraine Lake Road.
19 km, 7+ hours, more than 2 liters of water each, 2 sandwiches, multiple mandarin oranges, and a few much-appreciated sugary treats...
Tired legs but ecstatic minds.
My friends' super tech watch reported 2100 calories burned.
 |
| Going up toward the Pass. |
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| Almost at the top of the Pass. Maggio's real name isn't Mountain Bluebird for nothing :-) |
Once down the steep and rocky descent off the back of the Pass, Paradise Valley opens up and the scenery is - once again - completely surreal.
It was still several hours to get all the way down from here and yes - all got tired - and we finished our last drops of water in the last 20 minutes of walking - but happy, content and Exhausted - we made it all the way around the circuit. Had a big dinner at home and slept a solid night's sleep.
Our kids at 10, 13 and 14 are like Mountain Goats and seem at home wherever we take them. The dogs, having both grown up in the Rockies, too - don;t miss a step, never stumble, trip...just simply amazing hiking partners.
Monday, July 15, 2013
Camping adventures
Where a door closes, a whole other possibility will open up.
Isn't that true with most things in life.
Through a series of events, I have learned to see that this also holds true for camping and I am quite sure my whole family will actually be forever be grateful for the "inconvenience" we experienced with over-booked provincial campgrounds we encountered about 4 years ago. We had planned on camping in B.C. at a popular provincial campground, and went there without a reservation: hopeful that we would still be able to find a spot for our tent. But the whole campground was jam-packed! It looked more like a parking lot than a nature-experience.
There were only "no reservations/one night only" spots available, and anyone who has set up a large tent with all necessary sleeping arrangements for a whole family for one night, only to tear it down the next morning to go and find a new spot for yet another one night only/ knows that this is not very much fun and the constant setting up and tearing down will really start to take the fun out of "camping" very, very soon.
So it was after one of these experiences four years ago; myself with three kids and two dogs in tow that I said to my kids "that's enough...we are out of here! surely we must be able to find someplace where we can stay a while. this is just not enjoyable." and we packed up; went and gassed up the van and wondered where to go next. It was in that gas station that I casually struck up a conversation with a friendly gentleman stating that we were on the look out for great places to camp; might he know of anyplace to recommend? Did he ever! He pulled out a map of BC / one of those free maps you find in every gas station and pointed to the small brown tent symbols strewn out all about the map...those brown symbols indicating a whole "underground" of camping / free camp sites all over the place! Surely we had noted these small symbols on the maps, but without any information about what they were or any road signs pointing us in their way - they had remained symbols on a map - nothing more.
The free camping spots are all off paved roads, and you really have to know about them to find them as you venture in on gravel roads, sometimes more like washboards than roads - but most are still accessible by our mini van without too much trouble, and once you find your destination you are in a place of peace and solitude/ very unlike the busy provincial campgrounds that is the only thing we had known of until our first and "forced" experience of Free Camping.
Now that we have seen and experienced what that can be like: there is no turning back and doing things the commercial way anymore. I will forever be grateful for that one turn in events, which forced us to look outside the beaten path and find an alternate way of enjoying what we all call Camping.
At many of these free campsites; there are no services. No running water, no showers, no water slides, no mini putt, no entertainment, no check in counter, no power, no guest services, no laundry facilities, no toilet paper in the outhouse and that; *the outhouse* IS the only luxury you will find. in short; there are none of the things you find at all the big "fancy" camp grounds. And that's probably what keeps the majority of folks away; and that's fine, of course. But if you are Iike me, and think you might enjoy trying these lovely free sites and simply don't know about them (like we didn't know about them) / then, that's a different story, and that's why I decided to write about our experience.
What you get instead of all of the "luxuries" outweigh all of those things in our minds; first of all true privacy: at our favourite lake, there are only a few campsites to begin with and they are spread out far and wide with lots of privacy between each. There are a few picnic tables, and if you are lucky, you might get a site with a table. On our first visit, we didn't have a table but on subsequent visits we have always managed to get access to a table. In total there are only about 10-12 sites and this time we counted only 4 other sites being used! Peace, tranquility, quiet and close to nature are the only appropriate words coming to mind describing it there. You wake up in the morning to the song contest of loons, listen to the squeaking of ground squirrels during the day and if you are lucky; as we were; you will get to see deer and other wildlife use the lake as a water hole at night, as well as fish jump high above the water, turtles swim around and share the waters with you as you go for a dip.
This was our third time back to the same place and we all saw the excitement of the dogs as we approached on the washboard, gravel road.They, too remembered and got SO excited arriving there! For the dogs; it means freedom, amazing access to swimming, lots of hiking, exploring, retrieving in water as well as on land, more swimming, snoozing in the shade with the wind blow-drying their wet fur...and surely one of their favourite "duties": prewashing all the dirty dishes and making sure we have no left overs to worry about storing ;)
I can't help but think this type of camping represents the kind of togetherness every dog dreams of.
Pinot, has always been an amazing traveler and has a beautiful appropriateness about her when it comes to being "on" and "off" (ie ; being able to settle and relax after activity periods end). With one very short exception she was off leash and completely free the whole time. Maggio has a tendency to loop and stress a bit more, gets rather obsessive about toys and can't really turn his retrieving desire OFF and needed a bit more management to begin with but was actually better on this camping trip than ever before. Likely; his ability to relax a bit more this time was a combination of now being in a place that's starting to feel familiar, together with a natural anti stress formula we all swore REALLY made a difference.
WAHOO - Dock diving sheltie! This is jump number 2 and look at the different body language here! Holy moly. Now a diver extra-ordinaire!
Of course, its hard to compete with Maggio's confidence and flying ability. He'd do this all day long and never start to think it's boring.
After five amazing days away, we're back home now and unpacking and remembering through photos and stories. What a great camping trip! It's moments like the fun dock diving event and swimming across the lake multiple times per day that bring us back year after year. The water is warm, you can actually swim and bob around on pool noodles (unlike in the glacial waters we have here at home in Banff). I'm sure we'll go back - if not a couple more times this summer - then next summer for sure...
Isn't that true with most things in life.
Through a series of events, I have learned to see that this also holds true for camping and I am quite sure my whole family will actually be forever be grateful for the "inconvenience" we experienced with over-booked provincial campgrounds we encountered about 4 years ago. We had planned on camping in B.C. at a popular provincial campground, and went there without a reservation: hopeful that we would still be able to find a spot for our tent. But the whole campground was jam-packed! It looked more like a parking lot than a nature-experience.
There were only "no reservations/one night only" spots available, and anyone who has set up a large tent with all necessary sleeping arrangements for a whole family for one night, only to tear it down the next morning to go and find a new spot for yet another one night only/ knows that this is not very much fun and the constant setting up and tearing down will really start to take the fun out of "camping" very, very soon.
So it was after one of these experiences four years ago; myself with three kids and two dogs in tow that I said to my kids "that's enough...we are out of here! surely we must be able to find someplace where we can stay a while. this is just not enjoyable." and we packed up; went and gassed up the van and wondered where to go next. It was in that gas station that I casually struck up a conversation with a friendly gentleman stating that we were on the look out for great places to camp; might he know of anyplace to recommend? Did he ever! He pulled out a map of BC / one of those free maps you find in every gas station and pointed to the small brown tent symbols strewn out all about the map...those brown symbols indicating a whole "underground" of camping / free camp sites all over the place! Surely we had noted these small symbols on the maps, but without any information about what they were or any road signs pointing us in their way - they had remained symbols on a map - nothing more.
Now that we have seen and experienced what that can be like: there is no turning back and doing things the commercial way anymore. I will forever be grateful for that one turn in events, which forced us to look outside the beaten path and find an alternate way of enjoying what we all call Camping.
At many of these free campsites; there are no services. No running water, no showers, no water slides, no mini putt, no entertainment, no check in counter, no power, no guest services, no laundry facilities, no toilet paper in the outhouse and that; *the outhouse* IS the only luxury you will find. in short; there are none of the things you find at all the big "fancy" camp grounds. And that's probably what keeps the majority of folks away; and that's fine, of course. But if you are Iike me, and think you might enjoy trying these lovely free sites and simply don't know about them (like we didn't know about them) / then, that's a different story, and that's why I decided to write about our experience.
What you get instead of all of the "luxuries" outweigh all of those things in our minds; first of all true privacy: at our favourite lake, there are only a few campsites to begin with and they are spread out far and wide with lots of privacy between each. There are a few picnic tables, and if you are lucky, you might get a site with a table. On our first visit, we didn't have a table but on subsequent visits we have always managed to get access to a table. In total there are only about 10-12 sites and this time we counted only 4 other sites being used! Peace, tranquility, quiet and close to nature are the only appropriate words coming to mind describing it there. You wake up in the morning to the song contest of loons, listen to the squeaking of ground squirrels during the day and if you are lucky; as we were; you will get to see deer and other wildlife use the lake as a water hole at night, as well as fish jump high above the water, turtles swim around and share the waters with you as you go for a dip.
This was our third time back to the same place and we all saw the excitement of the dogs as we approached on the washboard, gravel road.They, too remembered and got SO excited arriving there! For the dogs; it means freedom, amazing access to swimming, lots of hiking, exploring, retrieving in water as well as on land, more swimming, snoozing in the shade with the wind blow-drying their wet fur...and surely one of their favourite "duties": prewashing all the dirty dishes and making sure we have no left overs to worry about storing ;)
I can't help but think this type of camping represents the kind of togetherness every dog dreams of.
 |
| Miss Pinot, moments before she decided she WILL actually take up dock diving. Here, she hadn't made that decision (yet) and was looking rather stressed about how to make this call..or whether it's even worth a try. "I AM a sheltie, after all". LOL. What a character, this one. |
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| Not quite sure what to do...as you can see. She wants to go in, but dock diving is a new concept to this girl. She learned to swim in this very lake when a little 8-10 month old youngster..but diving off a dock??? not so sure it's a good idea. |
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| BUT THEN something happened (maybe our encouragement that she CAN DO IT...and look at this - all brakes still on she decides to give it a try...but then, look at the next image!! |
After five amazing days away, we're back home now and unpacking and remembering through photos and stories. What a great camping trip! It's moments like the fun dock diving event and swimming across the lake multiple times per day that bring us back year after year. The water is warm, you can actually swim and bob around on pool noodles (unlike in the glacial waters we have here at home in Banff). I'm sure we'll go back - if not a couple more times this summer - then next summer for sure...
Tuesday, July 9, 2013
the other awesome dog
Monday, July 8, 2013
photo shoot with two awesome dogs
Just the other day I sent out a newsletter with the latest updates and a bit of info on what's in the works with Wags:
Some of these projects are very "secretive" (LOL, or called ever-evolving ideas in progress) - others are areas where I need specific images for specific things. There is a clear vision of how the images will be used and I know what the final product will be and why and where I need the images.
But one problem with being creative is that one idea frequently leads to another...and the "simple project" can quickly grow, and become impressively huge - but never finished. I have only barely started editing images from yesterday and ideas are already spinning in my head of all kinds of fun I could have building this or that idea further...
- Drop-in dog training locally over the next several weeks
- the next upcoming seminars for this year and next (!)
- as well as a Model call looking for fresh "modeling talent" for some specific photography projects I have in the works.
Some of these projects are very "secretive" (LOL, or called ever-evolving ideas in progress) - others are areas where I need specific images for specific things. There is a clear vision of how the images will be used and I know what the final product will be and why and where I need the images.
But one problem with being creative is that one idea frequently leads to another...and the "simple project" can quickly grow, and become impressively huge - but never finished. I have only barely started editing images from yesterday and ideas are already spinning in my head of all kinds of fun I could have building this or that idea further...
Isn't she impressive: Chowder, balancing that big long body of hers in this awesome trick?!
We had a great photo shoot yesterday - another to come with very different looking dogs on July 22nd. Now I need to wrestle my spinning mind to the ground, stay on task and try to focus on completing this project before I start dreaming up the next idea:-)
As I was editing photos and trying to slow down my racing mind - I found It's no different than trying to achieve a specific goal in dog training. We quite often get excited on route and see progress and results in one area, sometimes causing so much excitement that it derails the process a bit...we now want to skip important steps and jump ahead. But often the result of jumping ahead is not faster progress but quite the contrary: when realizing, soon enough, that pieces are missing and we now need to go back and fill in the gaps.
Stop. Slow down. Look at your road map. Remember where you are going, and aim there and get there.
One step at a Time.
So that's where I am at. Nevertheless, if you'd like to be part of future creative projects and want to be kept in the loop about new modeling opportunities that will no doubt be coming up - please subscribe to Wags' newsletter and make sure you set your email to allow messages from Wagsunlimited. I do have a feeling it won;t be long before the next vision will be put to action...
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
Hosting a Canine CSI course...what could possibly go wrong?
Now that the 4-day John Rogerson Canine CSI event is behind, and I have had an entire week to rest and get my feet back on the ground, I am finally ready to sit down and write a little bit about it. I will start with a part of the back-story. Behind the Scenes.
I was very excited going into the two back-to-back seminars with John Rogerson. But the honest truth is that the real anticipation (for me, personally) was for the second part of his little tour here: the hands-on Canine Crime Scene Investigation course - hosted in the gorgeous National Park I get to call home: Banff, Alberta. Smack in the middle of the gorgeous Canadian Rockies.
The lead up to part of that excitement is that the course had been in the making for a very long time - over one and a half years. When I initially had heard back from John about the possibility to bring him to Canada and was communicating with him about options for the CSI course - I had presented him with three different hosting options and locations (two of them being in the outskirts of Calgary) - the third one; by far the most difficult to pull off in terms of permits and and logistics - was Banff.
Which one did he get excited over?
Banff.
So it needed to happen.
And it did. Over the course of several months, through many phone calls, meetings face to face as well as emails and more meetings: permissions, permits were granted and contracts were signed and indoor- as well as outdoor options were scouted. A plan with multiple back-up-plans started to take form and things seemed to be in absolute control. Working with not only Town Officials, but also Wildlife Management Specialists from Parks Canada, our main concern for having 18 dog-handler teams as well as 12 auditors, training outdoors, was to have plans and then back up plans for avoiding clashes with wildlife.
June in Banff, is elk calving season - and the interesting effect in nature with newborn baby elk is that they tend to draw in bears - who are hungry after hibernating for the winter. We certainly didn't want to put a group of dogs on a collision course with a bear hunting for breakfast...
But everything had come together. Every necessary plan seemed to be in place and the outdoor training options, in turn, had alternate back-up-plans in case we would need to move the group. Hosting a multiple-day dog seminar in Banff was actually going to happen!
By Wednesday June 19th, after finishing up a 3-day Lecture course in Calgary, we were in the Mountains and we were touring John and his wife Judy around all the different locations in and around Banff. My dear friend Catherine Thomas had already joined us from New Brunswick for the Lecture Course in Calgary and stayed on through the CSI Course to lend a much-needed hand. Another friend, and participant in the CSI course Susan Gottselig, had so graciously offered to host Judy and John in her home and now joined us all for the site visits.
It was a rather grey and rainy day. But we were all sporting our rain gear and none of the four dogs we brought along for the outing seemed to mind. John was excited about the possibilities seeing all the places; photos were snapped to map out the crime scenes and the story was coming together (although kept secret from Catherine, Susan and myself who were going to be participants in the course). As the rain kept pouring down, we said "See you tomorrow morning at the Fenlands Rec Centre!" to Susan, Judy and John...and Catherine and myself headed into a final night of some last minute prep and loading the van with seminar snacks, water bottles, props and dog gear.
The rain kept pouring. We didn't really think much about it that night. But as I lay in bed with the bedroom window open, I heard it all night. Relentless, hard and persistent. All night long it Poured.
Very early Thursday morning, June 20th I woke up to a message on my phone from one participant who had planned on driving in to Banff that morning. The message was short and got me right out of bed with amazing speed: "The highway from Calgary to Banff is closed." Did that ever get me going! Onto weather channels on the internet and a quick glance through news pretty quickly filled me in: there was flooding and the highway between Calgary and Canmore had already been closed -- and now -- the section between Canmore (where John and Judy were hosted at Susan's house!) and Banff was also in danger of being closed.
That wasn't pleasant news: the seminar presenter is a pretty substantial part of hosting a seminar - I needed to get John and Judy to Banff asap!
My phone call to Susan caught her as off-guard as I had been myself to the first news of highway closures. But she didn't waste a single moment, got the key people in motion and set off in the downpour in her van toward Banff.. crisscrossed the Town of Canmore to get out through rising flood waters everywhere and passed through park gates into Banff moments before that section of highway also closed...
...what we didn't know then, of course, was that bridges and that section of highway were going to be partially washed out and the highway would be closed and remain closed for the next two days and John, Judy and Susan would now also be stranded in Banff without ways of returning to Canmore...
Further to this; it would involve a serious juggling act to get all the CSI Props from Canmore to Banff in time for us to solve a crime.
In the end, our Canine CSI Course was hosted through the Great Flood of 2013. Wildlife was the least of our concerns. Out of a sold out and full course with 29 registered participants - all but 4 made it to Banff before the highways closed. As of Thursday June 20th and the official start of the course, we were all stranded in Banff. It was not possible to leave and get out because of highway closures, mudslides and wash-outs all around us. But we were able to stay dry and safe, and the feeling was that "If we are all going to be stuck in Banff together - we might as well be stuck together and doing something we all love: training and working with dogs."
So, despite much chaos that ensued on the outside, the course went ahead. Plans changed many times and then changed yet again. John and Judy continually adapted and flexed with the ever-evolving plans. No content was lost and while we couldn`t get to locations such as Cascade Ponds (flooding made it impossible to get there) nor the Rec Grounds (completely flooded and under water) - we DID get outside and we did enjoy some beautiful scenery right within the Townsite. Overall the feeling was that participants left with big smiles on their faces, they had a great experience - although not exactly in the way that was originally planned.
Now the question that lingers in my own mind is --- the next Wags unlimited seminar is Suzanne Clothier`s return in November (Nov 9-11, 2013). How much extra planning and discussion will go in to making sure we`ve discussed all the unlikely natural disasters...in the event and IF..?
I have a feeling that for myself: I am not able to walk away from this untouched.
The landscape of much of Southern Alberta has forever been altered due to the floods. I think event planning in my own books is in that same category, too. Forever altered.
But I would not necessarily say that's a bad thing :-)
Lastly a MASSIVE Thank You to all the participants who stuck through it all. You were simply an amazing group of people!! Truly a phenomenal bunch!!
Thanks to John and Judy for continually flexing and re-creating new plans on the fly and just making it happen despite flooding and rain. Thanks to Catherine for all your help and support through the whole event. And Thank you, Susan for stepping in and helping where help was needed! It's because of big efforts from people with big hearts that it all came together - despite crazy obstacles being thrown in our path.
.JPG) |
| This is a collection of some of the clues our CSI Group had gathered during day 3 and 4 and tried to piece together to solve a murder mystery. |
The lead up to part of that excitement is that the course had been in the making for a very long time - over one and a half years. When I initially had heard back from John about the possibility to bring him to Canada and was communicating with him about options for the CSI course - I had presented him with three different hosting options and locations (two of them being in the outskirts of Calgary) - the third one; by far the most difficult to pull off in terms of permits and and logistics - was Banff.
Which one did he get excited over?
Banff.
So it needed to happen.
And it did. Over the course of several months, through many phone calls, meetings face to face as well as emails and more meetings: permissions, permits were granted and contracts were signed and indoor- as well as outdoor options were scouted. A plan with multiple back-up-plans started to take form and things seemed to be in absolute control. Working with not only Town Officials, but also Wildlife Management Specialists from Parks Canada, our main concern for having 18 dog-handler teams as well as 12 auditors, training outdoors, was to have plans and then back up plans for avoiding clashes with wildlife.
June in Banff, is elk calving season - and the interesting effect in nature with newborn baby elk is that they tend to draw in bears - who are hungry after hibernating for the winter. We certainly didn't want to put a group of dogs on a collision course with a bear hunting for breakfast...
But everything had come together. Every necessary plan seemed to be in place and the outdoor training options, in turn, had alternate back-up-plans in case we would need to move the group. Hosting a multiple-day dog seminar in Banff was actually going to happen!
By Wednesday June 19th, after finishing up a 3-day Lecture course in Calgary, we were in the Mountains and we were touring John and his wife Judy around all the different locations in and around Banff. My dear friend Catherine Thomas had already joined us from New Brunswick for the Lecture Course in Calgary and stayed on through the CSI Course to lend a much-needed hand. Another friend, and participant in the CSI course Susan Gottselig, had so graciously offered to host Judy and John in her home and now joined us all for the site visits.
It was a rather grey and rainy day. But we were all sporting our rain gear and none of the four dogs we brought along for the outing seemed to mind. John was excited about the possibilities seeing all the places; photos were snapped to map out the crime scenes and the story was coming together (although kept secret from Catherine, Susan and myself who were going to be participants in the course). As the rain kept pouring down, we said "See you tomorrow morning at the Fenlands Rec Centre!" to Susan, Judy and John...and Catherine and myself headed into a final night of some last minute prep and loading the van with seminar snacks, water bottles, props and dog gear.
The rain kept pouring. We didn't really think much about it that night. But as I lay in bed with the bedroom window open, I heard it all night. Relentless, hard and persistent. All night long it Poured.
Very early Thursday morning, June 20th I woke up to a message on my phone from one participant who had planned on driving in to Banff that morning. The message was short and got me right out of bed with amazing speed: "The highway from Calgary to Banff is closed." Did that ever get me going! Onto weather channels on the internet and a quick glance through news pretty quickly filled me in: there was flooding and the highway between Calgary and Canmore had already been closed -- and now -- the section between Canmore (where John and Judy were hosted at Susan's house!) and Banff was also in danger of being closed.
That wasn't pleasant news: the seminar presenter is a pretty substantial part of hosting a seminar - I needed to get John and Judy to Banff asap!
My phone call to Susan caught her as off-guard as I had been myself to the first news of highway closures. But she didn't waste a single moment, got the key people in motion and set off in the downpour in her van toward Banff.. crisscrossed the Town of Canmore to get out through rising flood waters everywhere and passed through park gates into Banff moments before that section of highway also closed...
...what we didn't know then, of course, was that bridges and that section of highway were going to be partially washed out and the highway would be closed and remain closed for the next two days and John, Judy and Susan would now also be stranded in Banff without ways of returning to Canmore...
Further to this; it would involve a serious juggling act to get all the CSI Props from Canmore to Banff in time for us to solve a crime.
 |
| Thursday afternoon's reality. A walk up there with my iPhone camera captured what was really happening. Semis in a stand-still, parked along the highway by Banff's Norquay exit - lined up as far as they eye could see. There was no leaving town for anyone at that point..Officially stuck in Banff. |
In the end, our Canine CSI Course was hosted through the Great Flood of 2013. Wildlife was the least of our concerns. Out of a sold out and full course with 29 registered participants - all but 4 made it to Banff before the highways closed. As of Thursday June 20th and the official start of the course, we were all stranded in Banff. It was not possible to leave and get out because of highway closures, mudslides and wash-outs all around us. But we were able to stay dry and safe, and the feeling was that "If we are all going to be stuck in Banff together - we might as well be stuck together and doing something we all love: training and working with dogs."
 |
| Dog Training in the beautiful Fenlands Rec Centre - the Curling arena minus the ice surface. Absolutely perfect for a dog training seminar. Very grateful to the Town of Banff for the use of this space! It was (and is) Perfect. |
So, despite much chaos that ensued on the outside, the course went ahead. Plans changed many times and then changed yet again. John and Judy continually adapted and flexed with the ever-evolving plans. No content was lost and while we couldn`t get to locations such as Cascade Ponds (flooding made it impossible to get there) nor the Rec Grounds (completely flooded and under water) - we DID get outside and we did enjoy some beautiful scenery right within the Townsite. Overall the feeling was that participants left with big smiles on their faces, they had a great experience - although not exactly in the way that was originally planned.
Now the question that lingers in my own mind is --- the next Wags unlimited seminar is Suzanne Clothier`s return in November (Nov 9-11, 2013). How much extra planning and discussion will go in to making sure we`ve discussed all the unlikely natural disasters...in the event and IF..?
I have a feeling that for myself: I am not able to walk away from this untouched.
 |
| Newspaper headlines in the days after the Great Flood. Devastation for many who were directly impacted by water damage. Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone who suffered loss due to the flooding. We were very fortunate. In the big scheme of things, the stress we experienced during our CSI event was nothing. We were safe and dry. A bit inconvenienced perhaps but able to juggle and change and keep going. |
The landscape of much of Southern Alberta has forever been altered due to the floods. I think event planning in my own books is in that same category, too. Forever altered.
But I would not necessarily say that's a bad thing :-)
Lastly a MASSIVE Thank You to all the participants who stuck through it all. You were simply an amazing group of people!! Truly a phenomenal bunch!!
Thanks to John and Judy for continually flexing and re-creating new plans on the fly and just making it happen despite flooding and rain. Thanks to Catherine for all your help and support through the whole event. And Thank you, Susan for stepping in and helping where help was needed! It's because of big efforts from people with big hearts that it all came together - despite crazy obstacles being thrown in our path.
THANK YOU! You are Amazing!
 |
| Judy and John Rogerson, Annette and her canine sleuth: Maggio after the CSI Course had come to an official and successful close. What could possibly go wrong?! (LOL) |
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