How The Lord of the Rings inspired a Saskatoon man to take a quest of his own

Mike Diakuw has always been fascinated by adventure.

As a child he spent hours listening to audiobooks his mother brought home from her job at the library. His favourites were The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien.

In 1994, this love of fiction would inspire the newly married Diakuw to take up a quest of his own.

He took inspiration from the journey Tolkien's characters Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas took to rescue Merry and Pippin.

I needed to go on that journey to rescue something, a feeling inside myself.- Mike Diakuw

"I had no real challenges as a university student in Saskatoon in my life, other than attending class," said Diakuw in an interview with Saskatoon Morning host Leisha Grebinski.

"I wanted things to get more exciting. So I decided one day I needed to go on that journey to rescue something, a feeling inside myself."

The quest he chose was to walk the perimeter of the city of Saskatoon.

Using a paper map from a gas station, he went to the edge of Montgomery — a neighbourhood on the far west side of the city — and started walking.

"I traced the line around every habitable dwelling in Saskatoon and tried to keep the city on one side of me all day," said Diakuw.

He did not make it all the way around.

"Somewhere on the edge of Sutherland, which at that point was the edge of town, I wound up having knee and hip problems," said Diakiw. "I had to give up the quest and quit."

But like Tolkien's characters, Diakuw is resilient. 

"I did it again and again and again," he said.

"It wasn't until 2006 or 2008 that I actually finished it. I tried a couple of other times and was rebuffed. Then that year I managed to do it and I felt really, really good."

Diakuw has made more than a dozen attempts to walk around the city, and has been successful eight of those times.

The city walk, as Diakuw refers to it, has changed over the years. Even though the city limits have expanded with neighbourhoods like Stonebridge, Brighton, and Evergreen, the walk has actually become shorter.

The Gordie Howe and Chief Mistawasis bridges make crossing the river easier and less risky. 

"Some years we would swim across to avoid having to take that long 10-kilometre detour to get back to the city," said Diakuw, who added he took safety precautions while crossing.

The city walk has also created a community. Friends and family members often join Diakuw for a portion, or show up with a picnic lunch.

Some set out with him at 4:30 a.m., armed with fresh cinnamon rolls and a determination to make it all the way to the finish line. Diakuw said this is what enables him to finish the walks, which can take more than 12 hours.

"The times when I don't succeed, it's usually because I'm alone," said Diakuw. 

With company, he says, "you just don't get that fear or feeling of aloneness. You're able to push on through what is a fair amount of discomfort or sometimes pain to do it." 

See what's on the edge of the city and have your own little journey.- Mike Diakuw

Diakuw's city walks have also helped him realize his calling is not to complete a journey. It is to always be on one.

"My quest is to live life to the fullest. To take every moment and find the curiosity and the adventure," Diakuw said. 

He encourages others to do the same.

"See what's on the edge of the city and have your own little journey."

It is easy to believe Tolkien would agree.