Are you looking for new ways to get outside and be active?
Check out EXPLORE Sudbury, a unique new program launched by the Rainbow Routes Association!
Nous sommes assis avec Véronique Charbonneau, gestionnaire du projet EXPLORE Sudbury, pour en apprendre plus sur ce nouveau programme.
What is "EXPLORE Sudbury"? What makes it such a great program?
EXPLORE Sudbury is a volunteer-led program offering guided urban hiking opportunities to all Greater Sudbury residents. Urban hiking consists of the on-foot exploration of our city & surroundings.
There are a million reasons why this is a great program, but most notably:
it is free and accessible to most
it takes the planning out of outings, since someone is guiding you
it allows you to discover great trails, routes, and places that we may not know about - even if you've been living in Sudbury your entire life
it's a great way to be physically active. I would like to stress that physical activity, especially in the outdoors, is invigorating - particularly to our mental, emotional and spiritual health. In fact, it has been shown that it can even decrease pain perception and negative emotions.
it's a great way to meet people of all walks of life, though many come out with a quieter and more meditative attitude.
it showcases our city's little known gems, and fosters civic pride and engagement. It fosters a feeling of belonging.
Though many of the EXPLORE Sudbury walks have taken place downtown, we are working on implementing events in all corners of Greater Sudbury
Qu'est-ce qui vous a inspiré à créer ce programme?
Nous avons simplement remarqué qu'il y avait un appétit pour ce type d'activité. Rainbow Routes Association organise depuis longtemps des randonnées pédestres mensuelles (Hike Club) et le nombre de participants augmente continuellement. Même que, plusieurs d'entre ces participants ont commencé à se rencontrer de façon hebdomadaire pour marcher et/ou faire des excursions.
En plus de cela, nous cherchions a rejoindre un maximum de gens - dans le passé, nous avions offert des programmes d'activité physique ciblant les personnes aînées - et ce fut un réel succès. Mais cette fois, nous voulions donner la chance a tous - peu importe les caractéristiques démographiques - de participer. Et nous nous sommes dit que ce nouveau programme avancerait notre mission et vision d'une ville bien connectée et en santé.
What are some of the more creative ideas your team has come up with?
Our first priority is to provide regular and simple walks, but naturally, everyone is getting excited about our special events series. Our program is just one month young, but we've already had volunteers come up with phenomenal ideas!
Jan 22: Murals Tour - we teamed up with the urban arts group We Live Up Here to offer a tour of all of downtown's murals - it was such a hit we decided re-do it in a few weeks.
Feb 12: Young Adults Walk - We are inviting young adults under the age of 35 to come out for some fellowship, followed by coffee at the Kingsway Starbucks
Feb 26: Interfaith Tour, Part 1 - We are planning on bringing you to most of downtown's places of worship - from Lutheran to Orthodox churches, to a Hindu temple and a Jewish synagogue, and passing through a Muslim Centre - we're aiming to do them all! We are inviting representatives from each place of worship to share some information on their building's history and key tenets of their faiths.
Other than that, we have a list of ideas, including family events, taste tours (how about a poutine tour?), walks to the downtown market, a dogs' walk, storytelling walks, trail runs, a single's walk, treasure hunts... the possibilities are endless! We are running with (almost) anything our volunteers & community express interest in.
Quels autres programmes l'Association de Rainbow Routes offre-t-elle?
Comme mentionné ci-haut, nous avons déjà offert des programmes à durée limitée incluant la marche nordique, des activités de cyclisme, pour les enfants, et plus encore. Nous sommes une très petite équipe, alors présentement, nos efforts sont majoritairement investis en la promotion des sentiers via EXPLORE Sudbury ainsi que la continuation de notre mandat principal - de construire des sentiers et améliorer la connectivité de ceux-ci à travers la ville afin de faire de Sudbury une ville vibrante et en santé.
Par contre, nous avons fait équipe avec les bibliothèques municipales pour continuer à offrir des marches nordiques, ainsi qu'un programme de prêt de raquettes.
Et bien sûr, lors que nous sommes en périodes de construction de sentiers, nous offrons toujours des opportunités de bénévolat.
Enfin, nous avons souvent des projets (et emplois) additionnels lors de l'été, alors inscrivez-vous à notre infolettre pour être tenu informé!
What's the best way to find out more about the program and to stay updated?
The best way to stay informed about EXPLORE Sudbury and other events is to bookmark our web calendar - that is where we post all of our events, and it is continually being updated with new events.
You can also like us on Facebook or sign up to our newsletter - we'll occasionally send you event reminders and if you'd like, other RRA updates (you can unsubscribe at any time).