Camp Yoga Alberta you did not disappoint! You were actually even more spectacular than last year! I attended the very first Camp Yoga in Ontario (Parry Sound) and that was a pretty epic weekend.
Mike and I arrived in Calgary early Friday morning, grabbed a rental car and headed out to Camp Chief Hector near Canmore, AB. We arrived during opening ceremonies so we quickly rolled out our mat and joined the festivities. Afterwards we registered grabbed a quick lunch and found our cabin.
We had registered for a semi-private room and were bunked in the Longhouse. We were paired with 2 other girls. One of their friends was all alone in a private room and asked if we’d like it. We jumped at the chance and headed over to new quarters.
Mike headed off to white water raft and I attended 2 yoga classes and then we met up for a Headstand workshop after dinner. My first class after lunch was Freedom Flow with Roz Huber. This class just made my heart fall wide open to what the weekend could offer me. If I stayed open and less introverty then amazing things could happen. During a great yin class called Finding Grace I then set that intention for the weekend and was blessed with so many new connections and conversations.
We started Saturday morning with a Gentle Vinyasa with Haley Manson. The class was exactly what my slightly sore body needed to start the day. After that we grabbed breakfast and then rushed to the waterfront for some stand up paddleboard action.
We then got to enjoy a lovely yoga tune up class with balls with Jeff Mah and then raced to the Climbing Tower for a bit of a challenge. We followed that up with some monkeying around on the boulder wall and then headed off to dinner.
That night we met 3 really cool women and ended up chatting all throughout dinner and 3 hours after. We grabbed warm clothes and shared a few bottles of wine around the campfire. It was an amazing night of great conversation, new friendships and a good old fashioned campfire. My heart was so happy.
The next morning I struggled to get to the 7am SATTVA class but so desperately needed it. After a great class and a final breakfast we again raced to the Horse Corrals. I say raced because this camp was so big we always were rushing to get from one end to the other on time for classes. I’ve only ever been on a horse once so this was so awesome. I felt like a little kid. Ross and I bonded a bit and had some fun doing a small trot a few times throughout the ride.
After yoga we spent some time in the dining hall waiting for lunch and then got in one last final activity. The team swing was pretty epic and made for some stomach dropping fun that was completely relaxing and amazing as well as you got to just swing back and forth for a few minutes after the free fall. We dared a staff member to do happy baby in mid air and got this epic pose instead.
I am so proud of my friend Chesley Long. He created this amazing camp that launched last year in Ontario and then rocked out three locations including Ontario, BC and this camp in Alberta this year. I can’t wait to see where he takes this event. It is one of the best weekends I could do for myself from both an outdoor adventure standpoint and for amazing yoga that opens my heart and mind to amazingness. I can’t wait to go back to the Ontario venue or try a new location next year.
Make sure you’re there next year! Just do it.