Most people would consider surviving avalanches and being forced to wade through icy rivers a terrifying, not exciting, ordeal.
But then again, most people aren’t Anders Morley. His father dropped him off in Prince Rupert last November. With nothing more than a pair of skis on his feet and a sled with 120 pounds of gear trailing behind him, the 34-year-old Thunder Bay man met back up with his dad last week in Manitoba four months and some 2,000 kilometres later.
“I’ve always wanted to take a long trip under my own power,” Morley answered as the simple reason he took the journey.
For around eight hours a day, the life-long skier found trails, logging roads, frozen lakes and snowmobile paths through Western Canada, avoiding the highways as much as he could. The first ten days were the most challenging as he navigated the mountains of British Columbia.
“I narrowly missed an avalanche. That was kind of exhilarating,” he said.
Sometimes there was no snow or trail to ski, which is when he took a ride, but not very often.
“For the most part I skied continuously,” he said.
Every ten days or so he would hit a small town to meet new and friendly faces.
“I was often invited into people’s homes and met all sorts of wonderful friendly generous people,” he said.
But for the most part he slept in a small four-season tent, wrapped in a down-filled sleeping bag with a vapour barrier.
“That kept me nice and warm,” Anders said.
So how does one prepare for a journey of that size? Anders said he didn’t do much physical training other than staying active. The most challenging part for him was pouring over maps to figure out his route. And the month spent last summer dehydrating food for the trip.
While some friends thought he was crazy, Morley’s family was very supportive. Even though he’s glad to have lived one of his dreams, Morely said from now on his trips will probably be less than ten days.
