From icy dips to fixed-wave surfing, Canadians are discovering new forms of adventure in the heart of their cities.GETTY IMAGES
A fond memory of visiting a Scandinavian-style spa with her father inspired Natasha Lemire-Blair to brave the icy water of Lake Ontario alone. Sadly, that time in 2021 was to manage the anxiety and grief of losing her father to Parkinson’s disease during the pandemic.
“Something about remembering that first cold dip and sense of perseverance and resilience that made me think, ‘I wonder if [other] people jump into the cold water in Lake Ontario.’”
She discovered SwimOP, one of several cold-water swimming communities in the Greater Toronto Area and, on a cold, snowy December day, Ms. Lemire-Blair ventured into Lake Ontario with a group of supportive swimmers.
“It was actually a wonderfully welcoming experience because of the shared concern everybody had for somebody who was new,” she says.
In the five years since, Ms. Lemire-Blair and her group have taken many people in for their first time. Some only wade in to their ankles or knees – which she considers a win because it helps them understand what to expect the next time.
“When you’re exiting the water, you have this sense of accomplishment and confidence that happens every time,” she says. “It’s that mental toughness you leave the water with then carry into your daily life.”
Ms. Lemire-Blair tries to swim with her group three times a week. Most people stay in the water from 30 seconds to two minutes. She has since progressed beyond short dips and is now training through the World Open Water Swimming Association, working toward a one-kilometre team swim in the winter.
Steve Mann, a University of Toronto professor and inventor, says he has always been fascinated by water – a fascination that hasn’t faded with temperature. He swims in Lake Ontario almost every day, year-round.
“Our favourite places to swim are at the heart of the city, as the whole idea of urban downtown swimming brings us to the nexus of nature, technology, and humanity,” he says.
For Mr. Mann, cold-water swimming comes with health benefits.
“I have a back injury so the cold water therapy is not merely recreational, it is also a medical necessity, and access to water downtown is necessary and important,” he says, noting that HTO Park in Toronto is wheelchair accessible right to the water’s edge. “We love the feeling of cold-water swimming and the happiness and peace of mind it brings.”
His top tips for beginners: never swim alone, wear a tow float for visibility and know your limits.
Ms. Lemire-Blair recommends finding a group who will look out for you and encourage you in a safe manner. It may even lead to new friendships.
“People who go into the cold water have this natural care and compassion,” she says. “As an adult, it’s been the best way [I’ve found] to make new friends, which often feels challenging as you get older.”
A sport shaped by the city
About 25 years ago, Dan Iaboni saw a news video showing French youth jumping onto rooftops and climbing onto and over obstacles in the streets. It changed his life.
“I fell in love with this video and I started going to the park and trying stuff,” he says. “I realized it was a lot harder than it seemed. I was pretty athletic, but it was tricky.”
For the next two years, Mr. Iaboni dove deep into parkour, practising moves despite the stares he attracted from curious Toronto onlookers. He then left university and went to France to learn from David Belle, the French actor and stunt coordinator widely considered the founder of modern parkour.
Historically, parkour’s roots are in military obstacle course training and martial arts. While all the climbing, flipping, jumping, rolling, vaulting and running is thrilling to watch, Mr. Iaboni also calls it “movement art,” as it’s closely related to dance.
“We tend to see the bigger, crazier things on the internet, but 95 per cent of the sport is low impact movement that is just getting your body stronger and more adept,” he says.
When Mr. Iaboni returned from France, he taught parkour outdoors – until winter hit. Realizing weather was the big issue, he opened the Monkey Vault, giving people a safe place to practice anytime of the year.
“We have probably the widest variety of people you’d ever imagine inside the gym,” he says. “My oldest student was 78. He was fantastic. He used to do army obstacle courses back in the day and wanted to get back into it.”
Mr. Iaboni says it’s really just people who connect, who come wanting to achieve a goal – hiking farther, climbing higher or finding confidence for a vacation excursion. He tailors instruction to their backgrounds and interests, unlocking movement they may not have realized they could do.
“It’s about building the physical capacity that makes life easier, better and more fun,” he says.
“It’s been a crazy ride and somehow it’s all connected, like this giant cool puzzle.”
Where the river carves out a surf community
If you have never heard of surfing on the St. Lawrence Seaway, you are not alone.
“It’s been running for more than 20 years, and people still don’t know about it,” says Hugo Lavictoire, president and founder of Montreal’s KSF (Kayak Sans Frontières), which just celebrated its 30th anniversary.
River surfing became part of KSF’s adventure offerings in the early 2000s, when Mr. Lavictoire discovered Habitat 67 – the name given to a standing wave located near the iconic residential complex. At the time, he was competing on a freestyle kayaking team, but an injury forced him to pause. While recovering, he tried ocean surfing in Mexico and then decided to try it on the river.
“We were a bunch of kayakers who first started surfing in Montreal,” he says. “We swapped our kayaks for surfboards and started surfing the same wave.”
But river surfing and ocean surfing diverge in key ways.
“In the ocean, the wave is popping out, then it will grab you on the way and it will die quite fast,” he says. “If you surf 15 or 30 seconds on the ocean wave, it’s amazing.”
River surfing uses a standing wave that’s always there. You swim out to it, take your time standing up and adjusting your stance, and can surf much longer.
“When it’s an ocean wave, one minute is exceptional,” says Lavictoire. “In the river, one minute is quite disappointing.”
Now, surfing more than 10 minutes is frowned upon, especially in July and August, the busiest months with lineups of surfers in swimsuits and shorts.
“One thing I love about giving courses is when you see them smile when they first stand up,” he says. “They get hooked automatically,”
From there, it is all about practice.
The safest way to start is to sign up for lessons covering currents, techniques, equipment, safety and etiquette. The age range is wide.
“From seven to 77,” Mr. Lavictoire says. “For sure, it’s mainly 20 to 40 (year olds), but it is not rare that we have someone older or younger. My own kids started at four or five.”