Archive:VIMFF 2008 Fall Speaker Series
Contents
1st Show
Kevin Vallely: ADVENTURES AROUND THE WORLD
Skiing the 2000 km Iditarod trail in Alaska in a 33day odyssey, summiting active volcanoes in Java in the midst of a Jihad, kayaking the icy waters of the oldest, largest and deepest lake in the world in Siberia, Russia with Kevin’s 9 month-old daughter, bicycling into gold rush history by retracing the famous ice bike of 1901 journey down the frozen Yukon River and joining teams of jungle patrollers atop Asian elephants in Aceh, Indonesia hunting poachers and illegal loggers in the Leuser Ecosystem, the last great jungle of Southeast Asia.
Adventurer extraordinaire Kevin Vallely and two fellow Canadians Ray Zahab and Richard Weber are leaving this coming November for the Antarctica with the intent of breaking the unsupported speed record to the South Pole. The idea is to make the 680 miles in 35 days. Check out [1].
Time
Thursday, October 16th @ 7pm (doors and reception at 6 pm)
Location
Centennial Theatre, 2300 Lonsdale Avenue, North Vancouver
Tickets
- $15 in advance
- $17 at the door
- package of 2 tix to 2 different shows $25
- package of 3 tix to all 3 shows $35.
Advanced tickets are available online at www.vimff.org; and at the Centennial Theatre, 2300 Lonsdale Avenue, North Vancouver, (604) 984-4484.
2nd Show
Robbin McKinney 's GREAT BIKE JOURNEYS OF THE WORLD:
Photographer Robbin McKinney (Vancouver) presents a slide show of bike travels through Canada, France, Italy, Spain, Ireland, Morocco, Turkey, Thailand and Croatia. Robin has been guiding trips around the world since 1985 and will share stories of his secret discoveries. In addition he will discuss the pros and cons of guided versus self-guided travel and for independent travelers will offer suggestions and advice.
Gwendal Castellan’s LONG ROAD NORTH:
Leaving behind his office with no windows, Gwendal Castallan realizes his dream of an adventure to travel half way across the planet at a human pace and experience the story of the road. Seen from the handlebars of a bicycle, the world is a lot smaller than he ever thought. This epic journey begins at the most Southern tip of Argentina, taking us on a modern “Motorcycle Diaries” through 18 countries along the longest road in the world. From the mountains of Patagonia, through Latin American mega-cities and small-town America, to the sparse reaches of the Canadian Arctic, we get a glimpse of what we would be like to drop everything and hit the open road.
In a time when global relations can make the world seem too scary to embrace, we are reminded that the most common thing we share with other parts of the world is humanity.
The sites they visit are more than just names on a map. These places might be familiar enough, but even then, it is not until they spent time exploring them that they realize that every city, every small town, every deserted stretch of road, carries a story of its own. As Gwendal journeys through this diverse landscape, he find that sometimes the farther we travel the more we realize the importance of relationship and family. Despite what he thought he knew about the world, he came to see that he hardly knew it at all.
Gwendal is a patient teacher known for his willingness to share his passion with others. With a degree in Geography from the University of Victoria and an eye for the world at large, he found his love for touring by bicycle in Australia. After several years programming satellite imagery for Radarsat International, the lure to find himself in those far away images of the world was too much. Currently he is the Executive Director of the Stanley Park Bike Festival in his hometown of Vancouver, Canada.
Time
Thursday, November 20th @ 7pm (doors and reception at 6 pm)
Location
Centennial Theatre, 2300 Lonsdale Avenue, North Vancouver
Tickets
- $15 in advance
- $17 at the door
- package of 2 tix to 2 different shows $25
- package of 3 tix to all 3 shows $35.
Advanced tickets are available online at www.vimff.org; and at the Centennial Theatre, 2300 Lonsdale Avenue, North Vancouver, (604) 984-4484.
3rd Show
John Dunn's Wild Canada: Crossing BC's Cordillera + A High Arctic Island Adventure
This special double bill features two of John Dunn’s favourite adventures: a 1000 km hiking and canoeing traverse of the untracked ranges of northern BC from Stewart to Fort Nelson, and a ski expedition to remote and beautiful Coburg Island in Canada’s high arctic. John rates the Cordillera Crossing as the toughest of his career: the 54 days of struggle through the wildest part of British Columbia turned out to be a great weight loss program. John and colleague Bob Saunders both shed 30 lbs on this expedition. Starting in September was fine for fall colours and cool, bug-free travelling. But by the time John and Bob were thrashing through the snow-covered Kwadacha wilderness, the late start seemed to be not such a great idea. But the challenge was accepted none-the-less!
Coburg Island is a gorgeous glacier-draped hunk of Canadian shield that is anchored 30 km out in northern Baffin Bay. Getting there is half the journey: firstly around the wind-ravaged tip of Ellesmere Island, then across the seasonal ice bridge over Glacier Strait. Coburg is a National Wildlife Area: home to countless seabirds that put its location to good use. The island’s mountainous spine boasts a wealth of skiable summits, while the coast line has more than its share of tidewater glaciers. Plenty of inspiration for big panoramic images.
John Dunn is a wilderness explorer, photographer and lecturer. He is best known for his epic arctic journeys, including pioneering traverses of Ellesmere Island and Baffin Island. His most memorable non-arctic adventure was a two month hiking and canoeing crossing of the northern cordillera of BC.
John was born in England and studied geology at university. This led to a job in mineral exploration in the Australian Outback: basically a 12 year paid camping holiday. He says he comes by his wilderness wanderlust honestly: his parents sailed around the world at the age of 65+. His presentations are considered to be among the very best of their type and his 2007 VIMFF lecture about Devon Island was a highlight of the festival. His expedition images were featured in National Geographic magazine and are marketed through Nat Geo’s Image Sales. John is now based in Switzerland but tries to get up to the Arctic each year: most recently to beautiful Coburg Island off Ellesmere. He has now hauled his sled over 8000 km, which he thinks might be enough of that form of travel. But he still has a long to-do list of other arctic journeys lined up for his 50s and beyond.
Time
Friday, December 12th @ 7pm (doors and reception at 6 pm)
Location
Centennial Theatre, 2300 Lonsdale Avenue, North Vancouver
Tickets
- $15 in advance
- $17 at the door
- package of 2 tix to 2 different shows $25
- package of 3 tix to all 3 shows $35.
Advanced tickets are available online at www.vimff.org; and at the Centennial Theatre, 2300 Lonsdale Avenue, North Vancouver, (604) 984-4484.
