Life Compass Program
28 Day Renewal Program for Adults 18-29
Spirit Point Lodge – South River, ON Dates & Registration Below
Need a jump-start in life? What are my strengths? What do I need to know about myself to succeed? What can the wilderness teach me? This program is designed for younger adults looking to discover or renew a vision and purpose. While learning to focus on the journey and follow your heart, you will also acquire valuable outdoor skills, test yourself on challenging whitewater, and acquire a set of unique certifications including Whitewater Rescue Technician Level 1 and a Level 1 Raft Guide Certification. Join us for an extraordinary journey of self-discovery and adventure with a group of adults on a similar pilgrimage to find the direction of their life compass.
“Any human anywhere will blossom in a hundred unexpected talents and capacities simply by being given the opportunity to do so.” Doris Lessing – Nobel Prize Winner
Immersion Experience
You will start your journey at our base camp near South River, ON. Once you’ve met your instructors and fellow students, and organized your gear, you’ll head out on the trail. The first aspect of the expeditionary equation is called Immersion. This 3-day journey takes place on the lower Madawaska River. It is designed quite literally to get your feet wet. During this time you will take part in important expeditionary workshops, deepen your paddling skills and begin to come together as a group on a river that has a great teaching progression. This allows you to practice, stretch and leap without having to feel “over your head”. Deepening trust and forming strong ties with your fellow group members is a strong theme that will get transferred to the more advanced stages and elements of your program.
“Life is not a problem to be solved, but a mystery to be experienced.” Gabriel Marcel
The Expedition
The second of your expeditions will see you journeying further afield on either the Petawawa or Coulonge rivers.
In this action-packed course, you will learn increasingly advanced whitewater paddling techniques in a variety of conditions, practice river navigation and the art of reading rivers and maps. You will learn swift-water safety procedures and rescue management, proper portaging techniques and how to swim through rapids, as well as how to select the perfect campsite in which to cook meals over an open flame. You will be given opportunities to test your leadership capabilities and learn about yourself.
On your 72-hour overnight solo, you’ll have time to reflect on your experience and set goals for the rest of the course and for life after Leaders of the Day©. The key components for this course are as follows:
- 3-Day Whitewater Skills Workshop
- 3-Day Whitewater Rescue Technician Certification Level 1
- 4-Day Raft Guide CertificationLevel 1
- 14-Day Whitewater Canoeing Expedition on the Coulonge or Petawawa Rivers
- 3-Day Overnight Solo Experience (built into the canoeing expedition)
- 1-Day Self-Guided Whitewater Rafting Day on the Ottawa River
At the end of your trip you will meet back at our base camp to celebrate your accomplishments with a special banquet prepared just for you. Now may be the time to realign your life compass.
“Find out what you want, imagine things as you want them, build new ideas of life, stop believing that some people are lucky and some must be poor, change your ideas and find that life is a beautiful adventure, that each day brings new opportunities to those who will lift their eyes above the everyday grind.” Venice Bloodworth
Your Instructors
At Leaders of the Day©, we hire talented Instructors with deep knowledge and experience of the outdoor world. They hold the highest industry standard certifications; have vast teaching experience, worldly knowledge, and deep log books. As well as being practiced guides, mentors and role-models, our Instructors are also skilled facilitators of the Transformative Experience.
They are experts at living, teaching and traveling in the wilderness and have been selected not only for their significant technical and facilitation skills but also for their wealth of unique life experiences that make them interesting, approachable people. They are passionate professionals teaching what they love to teach most and have great energy and excitement for helping you get your start.
From Learner to Leader
In addition to the many certifications available, the Life Compass Program curriculum includes a number of Peak Transformative Experiences that assist you to confidently move through the journey from Learner to Leader:
- Experience being the Leader of the Day – This is a valuable opportunity for learning that lets you and a partner take the lead. Together you will help to plan, oversee and support an entire day of the expedition, with the background safety net and available guidance of your experienced Instructors.
- Wilderness Solo on Expedition – This very transformative multi-day experience unfolds towards the end of the program and marks the crossing of a very important threshold from Learner to Leader. It is an opportunity that few people in the world today ever experience. It is a time to experience the beauty and quiet of the wilderness, to integrate learning and to engage in personal reflection.
- Leadership Practicum – In the final stages of the expedition, the Instructors will fade more and more into the background as the members of your group have capacity to assume greater responsibility and leadership. For up to three days, your group will collaboratively plan, manage and negotiate all aspects of the expedition to your destination. Your Instructors will remain as invisible risk managers and safety nets only. This is your moment to shine and to prove to yourself that you are ready!
Physical Readiness
This is a program with strong physical elements. You do not need to be an athlete to thrive in this program, but it is important to make good preparations that will set you up for success.
What’s Included?
- All certifications and course-related materials and texts.
- All specialized and technical equipment.
- Shared Accommodation, maximum 3 people per room in the beautiful Spirit Point Lodge (includes the night before the course starts).*
- Catered Meals are home-cooked and made with quality ingredients daily; fresh tea, coffee, and a selection of fruit & snacks are readily available throughout the day.** All expedition food.
- Hands-on training and simulations with theatrical make-up and video feedback where applicable.
- Classroom, Lounge/Study Area, Instruction, & Recreational Facilities including lakefront, canoes, climbing wall, and sports field when not on expedition.
All The Particulars
| Life Compass Program | |
| Duration: | 28 days |
| Age: | 18-29 (Average Age 24) |
| Dates: | Multiple Dates; Please see below. |
| Course Start/End: |
South River, Ontario, Canada |
| Course Components: |
Whitewater Rescue Technician [Level 1 Cert.] Introducyion to Whitewater Canoeing Whitewater Canoeing Expedition Level 1 Raft Guide Certification 3-Day Wilderness Solo Experience |
| Application Fee: | None |
| Tuition Fee: | $4995.00 CDN Dollars + tax (Upon Acceptance) |
| Eligibility: | Interested individuals that pass a medical screen. |
| Prerequisites: | None (simply complete the application process) |
We Invite You
“You are not alone, there are others on their way on the same track. The track may be narrow and steep and boring and frightening, but everybody walks on it. You are not alone, but linked to everything around you.” Zen
Dates: May 27 – June 23, 2011
Register Here. It’s fast, easy and secure.
The Leaders of the Day Challenge is to:
seek the courage to step outside the familiar;
the boldness to experience new frontiers within yourself
and to consistently pursue greater personal excellence.