Time: Tuesday February 23rd, 7:30 pm.
Speaker: John Wright
Bio: A long time climber, skier, kayaker and general outdoor type, John grew up near Birmingham, England. After gaining a BSc in Geography and being bored out of his mind working in the water industry, his passion for mountaineering led him to join the British Antarctic Survey as a field guide.
John overwintered at Halley Research Station, conducted field operations on the Polar Plateau and The Shackleton Mountains and experienced an additional enforced winter at the Argentine Belgrano Station. On return to the UK he qualified as a teacher of outdoor activities and taught for four years before joining the British Army as an Education and Training specialist.
He served in the UK, Hong Kong and Germany and took every opportunity to continue his climbing in the European Alps, New Zealand, Greenland, Svalbard and Southeast Asia. After an exchange tour in Canada he transferred to the Canadian Army in 2007 and finally retired in 2012.
Although he rarely climbs these days he still skis, kayaks and canoes and enjoys guiding on ships in the Polar Regions. He lives with his wife Pippa, dogs and assorted poultry on a rural property near Merrickville, Ontario.
John was awarded the British Polar Medal with Antarctic and Arctic clasp by The Queen in 1999. He’s a Fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society, and a Senior Polar Tourism Guide with the Polar Tourism Guides Association. He’s also a member of the Alpine Club of Canada and the Alpine Club in the UK.
Topic: John’s presentation will comprise an overview of climbing and ski expeditions with young people and soldiers going back to the early 1980s as well as more recent work on board cruise ships.
Join us on Zoom via:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/5093999952
Once again, immediately following the presentation from our guest speaker, we will be hosting a virtual social gathering via Kumospace. To join, please go to ACC-YYZ’s Virtual Pub Nite Room. To enter, you will need to register. Our room size is limited so don’t be late!
For more information on Kumospace, you can find them here.
