It's time to settle back into city life for one Winnipeg couple after living off the land in the Manitoba wilderness for 180 days. The couple set out into remote Atikaki Provincial Wilderness Park near the Bloodvein River in May with a small ration of flour, milk powder and rice.
"When we got there the first night and I saw the amount of rice we would be sharing every night for the next six months, I was like, 'Oh my gosh, you're joking. This is all we have to eat?'" said Jennifer Ford who left the food planning up to her partner, Juan Pablo Quinonez.
Their food rations accounted for half of the couple's daily caloric intake. To make up the other half, Ford and Quinonez relied on hunting and gathering.
The wilderness park is about 250 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg, between Lake Winnipeg and the Ontario border. The only means of accessing it is either by canoe or floatplane.
The journey tested the couple's communication and conflict resolution skills. With limited energy, they kept themselves busy with small projects such as making a fishing net of spruce roots. Quinonez also brought along his birthday present — a set of dice, handmade by Ford — so there was also Yahtzee.
The couple brought along a satellite messaging device in case of emergency and to stay in contact with friends and family. There were times when they yearned for home, but now there are mixed emotions on being back inside the city.
"It's kind of a shock. I was riding my bike last night and everything is so busy and there's so much noise. It's kind of like a culture shock," said Ford.
"When we were in the forest and we saw for the first time a structure — a bridge — we kind of hesitated for a moment and then felt like, oh wow, this is a huge step we're doing. It's going to be a shock for sure, it's very different from what we've been living for six months," said Quinonez.
Why? They seemed to enjoy it and reflecting upon it is informative.
It's not your thing, I get it but calling it unnecessary kind of reeks pretentious.
I don't understand how my comment seems pretentious. In fact, I think attempting to isolate yourself from the real world just for the sake of it is more pretentious, and a lot of people that do want to seem showy by going against the grain.
I don't understand how my comment seems pretentious. In fact, I think attempting to isolate yourself from the real world just for the sake of it is more pretentious, and a lot of people that do want to seem showy by going against the grain.
do we need to go there? because now you're kinda being annoying.