Guiding the guides: Training program primes tourism workers for Yukon backcountry

A new program in the Yukon aims to help tourism and adventure guides get a better understanding of the territory — and be more prepared.

The training program aims to both attract new workers to the sector and ensure they have a solid knowledge base, not only for the wilderness, but also specific to the territory.
 
Each year, it's estimated there are about 400 guides working in the Yukon tourism industry. Some guides are local residents, but others have been trained or have obtained various certifications in other parts of Canada or overseas.

"We can end up with people who come from outside the Yukon, who arrive in May, who have no understanding of the Yukon," says Jean-Pascal Ladroue, president of the Whitehorse-based Canadian Outdoor Academy which runs the new program.

He says sometimes those guides are sent off with a group of tourists, on the rivers, the trails and the roads without a solid understanding of the Yukon. Ladroue says that kind of scenario was one the drivers behind this new program, a Yukon primer of sorts.  

"So the idea is just to give them a baseline, like first aid in the wilderness, paddling in the canoe, swift-water rescue, get knowledge on what's going on in the Yukon — like the history, First Nation cultures and heritage."

The Canadian Outdoor Academy has roughly a dozen students enrolled in the inaugural course.

Over 15 days, the student guides are immersed in a variety of situations and introduced to things like how to use a satellite phone, and meal planning for the backcountry.

The days are purposely long and demanding, just like the life of a guide when out on tour with a group of visitors

"It's intense... the idea is to let them feel what the guide is going to feel on the field," said Ladroue.

Ladroue says for guides coming from elsewhere, having a full understanding of the remoteness and isolation of the Yukon wilderness is essential.

"The guide has to be well-prepared," said Ladroue, noting that just five minutes from downtown Whitehorse is already considered wilderness for many people.

On the shores of the swift-flowing Yukon River, Belgian Lionel Pelecyn is among the international guides in the program. He started guiding when he arrived in the territory two years ago and is eager to get better. He says you can never be too prepared.

"Here we are put in real life situations, under pressure, and you have to figure it out," Pelecyn said.

Waiting to jump into the chilly water as part of a practice rescue, he says he had some experience before arriving in the territory.

"But like, I could really increase my skills here during this course so that was like the perfect opportunity. So I like, jumped on it."

The Wilderness Tourism Association of Yukon (WTAY) hopes the new program might attract some guides to move to the Yukon and stay.

"Having this new training is key to answer a few questions that we have currently facing our industry," said Maxime Gouyou-Beauchamps who's with the WTAY.  

Given the crunch, it can be difficult for seasonal workers to find a place to live, he notes, and that is putting pressure on the tourism industry. If through this course more guides stay and settle, it could ease that pressure.

"So having that training and having that pool of student guides that are available locally really helps answering that issue," he said.

The program is open to employees of any Yukon tourism operator, so Gouyou-Beauchamps hopes it might set a standard of quality for guides across the territory.

"It really allows us to set the bar or raise the bar and say, 'This is what we want to see on a wilderness tour, and it doesn't matter which company you are working for'."

The Canadian Outdoor Academy plans to run a winter version of the course later this year focusing on an introduction to things like dog sledding, snowmobiling, ice fishing,

Ladroue says the big dream is to build the training into a multi-year program, but for now the organization is celebrating the first class of graduates who are ready to set out on trips with visitors any day.