Past Events & Photos

Azimut Camp / Forest Fantasia / Escapade Boréale / Лісова мрія 2023

For the 6th year, Azimut Laurentides organized a summer camp to introduce families to orienteering. At the same time, a junior camp for Ukrainian orienteers recently arrived in Canada was held. Camp participants got in shape for the Canadian Orienteering Championships and had a great time, in good company, in the enchanting setting of Chalets Lanaudière.

O-Skate 2023 took place at the Domain Enchanteur on February 18, 2023.
We had excellent participation: 88 participants, including 50 Ukrainian newcomers. For many, it was their first time trying our sport, for some, it was easy, and they did more than one course! Jennifer O’Connell and Chris Cross did a terrific job at registration and timing. In the end, everybody won!

Check out the pictures from our event here:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/fuBrZMKi3MWgJPCu8

We wish you all happiness, health, and peace.
Hope to see you again in the forest!

Forest Fantasia / Escapade boréale / Лісова мрія

The Club Azimut Laurentides and the organizing committee of the project are proud to announce the successful completion of Forest Fantasia – a much-needed vacation getaway for Quebec’s Ukrainian refugees: displaced children and their mothers. The project has been endorsed by the Quebec division of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress and Ukrainian and Quebec Orienteering Federations. This camp has been our way to express our support of Ukraine and its people, and also our way to contribute to the thriving and development of the Ukrainian community in Quebec, while also learning about Quebec’s nature, language, and culture.

Over the 3 following weeks: July 25-31, August 1-7, and August 8-14 (Monday to Sunday), we’ve accommodated 3 groups of displaced Ukrainian children, accompanied by their mothers, grandmothers, or older sisters. We had respectfully received: on week 1: 13 women and 17 children, on week 2: 12 women and 18 children, on week 3: 13 women and 19 children. The total of our campers was: 54 children out of a total of 92 people. The groups were accompanied by 6-8 live-in volunteers, both adult and minor, who were in charge of food preparation, activities, and first aid both medical and psychological. Local Orienteering athletes and families took turns in organizing orienteering training events and friendly competitions.

Our campers stayed in dorm-like accommodations at the vacation center “Chalets Lanaudiere”. We occupied a big 8-room cottage, and another big cottage served as the kitchen, dining room, and activity center. At our disposal, we had 6 square kilometers of forest, 2 lakes, all necessary water and Orienteering equipment, an obstacle course, children’s playground. During our two day trips, the campers were able to visit the best local attractions: Dorwin falls and the Cascades, Kinadapt activity center with 101 huskies, and “Terre des bisons” with its animals and museum.

With a few minor differences between the weeks, the Camp program was identical for all 3 weeks and was as follows:

Monday July 25 / August 1 / August 8
Noon: Departure from Parc des Ukrainians (Montreal)
PM: Settling, meet and greet, touring the site using an Orienteering map
Presentation on the banking system in Canada
Evening: Campfire, Ukrainian music

Tuesday July 26 / August 2 / August 9
AM: Learning about safety in the forest and on the water
Lesson in French
PM: Introduction to navigation with map and compass, classical Orienteering courses
Visit to the local Nature Museum on-site (Camp Mariste)
Swimming and kayaking on the lake Morgan
Evening: Campfire, Glow-in-the-dark party

Wednesday July 27 / August 3 / August 10
AM: Bus tour to Rawdon Cascades, Dorwin Falls, Municipal beach. Orienteering activity and lunch at Dorwin Park (pizza).
PM: Clay workshop
Evening: Campfire, Ukrainian songs

Thursday July 28 / August 4 / August 11
AM: Orienteering activities (classical courses)
PM: Visit of magician Rene Mailloux
Presentation on past and present of the Ukrainian community of Canada
Evening: “Vampire-O” team Orienteering tag game

Friday July 29 / August 5 / August 12
AM: Bus tour to Kinadapt, Terre de Bisons. Orienteering and Geocaching activity and lunch (pizza delivery) at Kinadapt.
PM: Presentation on the healthcare system in Quebec
Ukrainian flower crown-making workshop
Evening: Campfire, stargazing

Saturday July 30 / August 6 / August 13
AM: Score-O Orienteering competition, then honoring the best and the effort
Swimming and water activities on Morgan Lake
PM: Emoji-O team game on Lamoreaux lake
Evening: Campfire, barbeque

Sunday July 31 / August 7 / August 14
AM: Adults: packing and sit-down-breath time, children: animation (giant bubbles, gifts)
Departure after the lunch

We had a lot of help from the municipality of Rawdon and its citizens. Gift certificates for food, and also fresh produce donations, as well as clothing and school supplies donations, came in very handy.

We had some media attention: on August 6th, we had a visit from CBC Montreal. They showed a segment with our campers and aired it on the radio as well. Unfortunately, they are still waiting for them to send it to us.

The Lanaudiere region Journal l’Action published an article about our camp: https://www.laction.com/article/2022/08/23/-ils-se-sont-sentis-aimes-et-apprecies

The Ukrainian Time youtube report about our camp in Ukrainian and English is here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96O9ZLpbOyQ

A publication in Journal de Montreal on September 17 mentions our camp, too : https://www.journaldemontreal.com/2022/09/04/des-ukrainiennes-accouchent-au-quebec-promise-a-un-avenir-plus-heureux?fbclid=IwAR2VAqJvvHOhXsSVUjgJVEZWRbWMYNM6W4ly2PgPnqx9Wu0H0Nlh85bB0Dc

A wonderful team of personnel and volunteers insured that our campers felt at ease and welcome. We are proud to confirm, that this goal has been achieved. At the end of each week, we asked our campers to leave us comments about their stay. The following remarks came up most often:

Immense gratitude to the Ukrainian community and the organizers of the camp
Opportunity to make new friends, break the isolation
Ability to stop worrying, take a break from the war, sleep well, and experience many happy moments
Opportunity for the kids to meet pairs who speak their language
Contact with nature, and the absence of electronics, the camp was a “breath of fresh air”
The feeling of being a part of a big family
Excellent food cooked with love
Well-thought busy schedule, a multitude of activities and visited attractions (everybody loved dogs, and cascades)
Everybody enjoyed the sport of orienteering in the forest, with games and competitions, and of course awards and gifts
Learning about finances, health system, school system, immigration to Canada
Learning about the Ukrainian community, including schools, churches, youth groups, media

Everybody wanted to come back! But meanwhile, we are all staying in touch. The Facebook and Telegram groups and chats have been created. Many of us saw each other at the Ukrainian festival. We keep exchanging useful information and organizing outdoor trips (camping, Orienteering). The camp turned out to be just a beginning of an amazing adventure, for both children and adults, Ukrainians and Canadians.

Please click on the link to see and download as needed a selection of our camp photos:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/VuAPiL2XTvbeTekk7

Camp Lanaudière-O-Rendez-vous 2021

Camp Azimut Laurentides 2019

Camp Azimut Laurentides 2018
“What I liked the most was spending time with amazing people. Every day was carefully planned:
A typical day starts with breakfast followed by orienteering training in the forest or a trip (for example to a Husky farm or to Acro-Nature). We then got to enjoy time at the beach, at the pool or got to play minigolf until lunch. After lunch, there’s another training session in the forest followed by swimming and games until supper. Some evenings also had one hour of orienteering theory. Finally the day ends by a campfire where we play games and and sing.“ – Irina Grabovskaia, camp medic

“I learned how to use a compass, how to read a map, and how to navigate in the forest during the day and at night. I also explored the Laurentian Mountains. The camp’s main location is Morin Heights but each training session took place in a different corner of the Laurentians. After training we would go swimming to various natural beaches.
It was my first orienteering experience and I’m very glad I participated! “– Eugene Beiline, camp volunteer