Bear Tracking and Conservation Horse Pack Trip this Spring and Summer
In this newsletter, we want to focus on your nature conservation through our bear tracking and conservation horse pack trips and how you can make the most of this opportunity while connecting to nature and experiencing personal development in the Chilcotin Ark.
Nature Conservation
With spring here, it is time to get started with some conservation and stewardship projects. One of our first projects each year is to combat one of the most invasive species in our guide area, and many other areas of British Columbia too. Burdock, with its Velcro-like barbs, spreads its seeds to other areas by attaching to the hair, fur, skin and clothing of animals and people. This time of year, we cut down and burn the burdock we find around the ranch and in the local area. We also remove burdock from our horses’ manes and tails so they can’t spread the seeds. You can help too. If you find burdock on your skin or clothing, or in your pets’ fur, make sure to remove it and dispose of it by burning.
Find out more from our partner, the Chilcotin Ark Institute
Bear Tracking and Conservation Horse Pack Trips
The bears are starting to wake up now, meaning the next few months are the prime time to see black and grizzly bears. On these horse pack trips, you will learn to identify black and grizzly bears and distinguish their tracks. Look for signs of bear activity and use this, alongside your new knowledge about bear behaviour, to track down bears and view them in their natural habitat. Learning about bear safety will allow you to track bears without disturbing them, making for a safe bear viewing experience for bear, horse and rider. While we ride, you will get involved in conservation projects, such as collecting grizzly hair from grizzly rub trees for DNA analysis. Recording all the wildlife you have seen in our wildlife sighting form will help us assess population numbers which are a vital foundation of our wildlife and ecosystem management projects.
Interested in a bear tracking and conservation horse pack trip? Find out more here.
Ready to Book?
Complete the Wilderness Readiness Survey to help you gain clarity on your interests, goals and purpose for your wilderness experience. Then, book the bear tracking and conservation horse pack trip that meets your interests.
Wilderness Readiness Survey
Take your stewardship to another level with our membership
Already know you love the Chilcotin Ark and want to keep coming back, year after year? Our membership packages offer you the perfect opportunity to do this. We’ve introduced our stewardship membership to you in our last three newsletters, this membership will give you access to half price mountain and ranch accommodation, ranch based wildlife tracking and conservation trips and hut based wildlife tracking and conservation pack trips for the next five years, depending on the level of membership you purchase. You will make your contribution to the conservation of the Chilcotin Ark as your membership fees will be used for stewardship activities in this internationally ecologically important area. Learn more about our packages in upcoming newsletters or check out our website.
Other ways to invest in your nature conservation
Are you ready to become a steward of nature? All of our hands-on training programs get you involved in conservation projects, sustainable practices and data collection. Our partner training website, the
Wilderness Training Academy, offers programs designed around the Three Pillars of nature connection, nature conservation and personal development. Check out our Wilderness Steward Training Program where you will learn more about the Chilcotin Ark and tangible stewardship practices.
Find out more
Community update
This week we are running our horse logging school where our students learn how to drive a horse, both singly and as a team, as well as the safe use of a chainsaw for logging. Horse logging has a much lower environmental impact that mechanical logging, there are many reason for this including that we aren’t using diesel fuel to operate heavy equipment, horses leave only their hoof tracks and horses are able to navigate down much narrower trails than heavy equipment, meaning only a small skid trail needs to be made. Bubbles and Willy, two of our logging horses, are giving the students lots of opportunity to practice all their horse-driving skills.
Have you seen our latest book summary? This week, Charlie summarized The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success and how these laws are implemented in the Trails to Empowerment community. Check it out here.
Have you seen our latest videos? We have shared some videos about some of our past guide school students and horse pack trip guests to show you what you can achieve on a journey with us. Watch the videos here.
Did you know our songs are now on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music and YouTube Music? So you can download them and take the inspiration wherever you go. Don’t forget to subscribe or follow us on your favourite streaming site to get the latest releases.
Stay up to date with what’s going on at the ranch by following us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter as Trails to Empowerment and LinkedIn as Chilcotin Holidays.
Do you need some calm in this world of turmoil?
Far away from world chaos, is a place in nature known as the real Shangri-La or Utopia of Canada called the Chilcotin Ark, our real and achievable connection to nature where there is no fear in drinking water from mountain streams, breathing crisp clean mountain air, harvesting berries from the alpine valleys, catching fish in the alpine lakes and being a contributor to nature’s natural order. There’s no cell phone, no traffic, it’s off grid and self-sustainable. You can join us in the mountains of British Columbia, Canada. Join us as a guest, an intern, a community member or as a community business partner.
Our community is built on our Three Pillar philosophy of personal development, nature connection and nature conservation. These Three Pillars are how we embody environment, social and governance factors, taking responsibility for our environment, both natural and cultural. We are a culture of equals where women and men take responsibility and initiative to be leaders, guides and mentors.
You can work in this community from horse care, mechanics, office and kitchen to horse logging, sustainable forestry and conservation projects to name a few opportunities. We’re a diverse business and you can get involved in any aspect from intern to management. Take a look at our intern page on our Chilcotin Holidays website and if you’re ready to join us, take the Wilderness Readiness Survey on Trails to Empowerment’s website.
Our interns applying for their Working Holiday Visas through Experience International Canada are getting their visas in very short times – some as quickly as six weeks. So now is the time to apply for your work visa.
We look forward to being part of your next nature connection wilderness experience.
Your Chilcotin Holidays Team