July 21 2009 » Skeena Swim » Calgary Herald
Swim to highlight unspoiled treasure
Julie Beun-Chown, For Canwest News Service
When Ali Howard wades into the frigid headwaters of the Skeena River in northwestern B. C. today, the 33-year-old professional chef will literally be up a 610-kilometrelong creek without a paddle.
Not that she’ll need one—she’s planning to swim.
Accompanied by a nine-person crew, including two kayakers, a whitewater raft and a specially trained team of supporters, Howard hopes to achieve what’s never been done before: complete the treacherous 610-km swim in 28 days. The expedition, which begins just south of the largely inaccessible and remote Spatsizi Plateau, will end in the Pacific Ocean, near Prince Rupert.
Dubbed the Spirit of the Skeena Swim, Howard says she’s taken on the epic journey to draw attention to the future of the untouched and undammed Skeena, home to “one of the largest intact predator-prey ecosystems left in B. C.” and a $110-million local wild salmon industry, according to the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society.
The area may see the beginnings of industrial development next year if energy multinational Royal Dutch Shell goes ahead with a 1,000-well coal bed methane drilling operation at the headwaters, a move protesters say will impact ecology on the Skeena and two other rivers.
Shell Canada spokesman Larry Lalonde says nothing has been disturbed so far in early investigations, and the company “has taken a break from exploration activities where we have tenure to explore for natural gas and coal” at the provincial government’s request.
And to keep it that way, the Ottawa woman is determined to get down the river in one piece.
“It’s miles from anywhere,” Howard says of the region. “It’s one of the longest rivers in North America, and the watershed itself is larger than the area of Switzerland.”
Such determination doesn’t surprise Skeena Watershed Conservation Coalition executive director Shannon McPhail, who says Howard began training for the swim last November after reading about Slovenian conservationist Martin Strel, who swam the entire Amazon River in 2007 for clean water awareness.
Since then, Howard has maintained a hectic schedule of swimming, weight training, soccer and squash. Not satisfied with that, she would even strap weights to her ankles and wrists while pulling 16-hour shifts in the kitchen at The Cliffs at Kispiox River resort, where she is executive chef.
“I’ve seen her put some bread in the oven, get something started on the stove and do 50 pushups or sit ups when waiting for things to cook,” laughs McPhail.
The journey will be broken into a series of daily swims between 15-and 40-km long, some of which will include navigating difficult Class 4 white water.
“I’m afraid of my shoulders breaking down and getting tendinitis,” Howard says. “But my discomfort and the hazards I face pale in comparison to what could happen to the river and watershed if we don’t draw attention to it.”
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Online – For more information about spirit of the skeena swim, visit http://www.skeenawatershed.com/swim
