An adventurer and passionate outdoor enthusiast, Cedar believes in the importance of connections to nature in one’s daily life. The CEO of
Adventure Canada—as well as an expedition planner, leader, and guide—Cedar’s work engages, entertains, and educates by connecting people to each other and the land through innovative travel experiences.
We met Cedar during our unforgettable trip with
Adventure Canada to both Nunavut and Greenland. It was an experience like no other and we learned so much during our expedition.
What's it like being the CEO of Adventure Canada?
It’s such a blessing to work alongside such amazing people and to have a job that’s challenging, fun, and rewarding. I worked very hard to get to where I am, and I’m honoured to now lead the company my family has built from the ground up. While I’m proud of the work I’ve accomplished, it’s only been possible alongside so many talented and passionate people. Part of the responsibility I feel as CEO is to amplify important messages and to foster a connection to nature in people’s lives, including my own. It’s really fulfilling to have such purpose in my work.
For someone who has been on many adventures within Canada, what are some of the top memories that stand out?
I have been blessed with the opportunity to travel widely and often in my life. In my world, work and play have always been closely intertwined. Whether sharing the Arctic with Adventure Canada’s guests or snorkeling Molokini with my family, my happiest moments are
those when I’m experiencing nature, meeting new people, and simply enjoying a change of
pace. I’ve never been one for large crowds, which is reflected in the destinations that I choose to visit. I am drawn to places where I feel a sense of serenity.
Many of my most treasured moments are in Torngat Mountains National Park. In the Inuit
homeland of Nunatsiavut, this is a land of deep fjords with towering mountains that tumble to
the Atlantic Ocean. It was here, in the Torngat Mountains, that I first felt like I was at the edge
of the world. It was humbling and exhilarating at the same time.
An equally powerful place is Orkney, a windswept island archipelago in Scotland. While the
natural beauty of rugged shorelines, lochs, and sandstone hills are a haven for nature lovers, to me Orkney is about people. Stone circles, deserted villages, brochs, and chambered cairns are what connect me here. The mysteries of the past lead the imagination to run wild. When I’m beneath a towering standing stone, marveling at its existence, I feel cloaked in our shared
human story.
It is hard to imagine that a place like Ilulissat exists. Above the Arctic Circle, on the world’s
largest non-continent island, is a place where the immensity of nature and human ingenuity mesh as if one. On Greenland’s west coast is a community dominated by the Sermeq Kujalleq glacier, at one of the very few places that the Greenlandic ice sheet reaches the sea. I am always awestruck by the magnitude of the ice sheet and the parade of icebergs alongside the vibrant community nestled into the rock. The beauty of the colourful community, replete with scrumptious cafés and artisan workshops, are a perfect complement to nature’s great canvas.
Sable Island is ever-changing. A thin sandbar 160 kilometres out to sea, it has captured the
fascination of Canadians for centuries. It is just close enough that tales of sailors, shipwrecks,
lonely lighthouse keepers, and wild horses are part of our collective imagination. The first time that I stepped out of a Zodiac and set foot onto Sable Island, it was otherworldly. The sound of the surf was my constant companion, while the rising mist revealed a beach which receded into patches of marram grass and grazing wild horses. Atop Bald Dune, the highest point on the island, I could take in the full expanse and appreciate complete isolation—my own grin mirroring this smile of sand in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean.
On family trips with my husband, Jason, and our daughters, Charlotte and Islay, it has been one of my greatest pleasures to rediscover the world through the eyes of our children. I can see that they, too, are in awe of the grandeur of the Torngat Mountains and Ilulissat’s icefjord. They are a reminder that the human spirit’s need to connect with the natural world and with each other exists within all of us from a young age.
Today, I sit in my home in southern Ontario and dream of these places that have shaped me.
And now that I see, too, how these spectacular places are shaping Charlotte and Islay, I am
thinking more and more about how to ensure that they not only exist well into the future—but
how to make certain that they are thriving and flourishing. Regenerative travel is the way of the future, and as a company and as a family, it is the path we are taking.
What was it like to grow up surrounded by explorers and adventurers?
It was an incredible privilege to have the childhood that I did. I was constantly surrounded by
fascinating, riotous people who enthralled me with stories and insights. I was able to gather
understanding of complex topics from all these experts—archaeologists, geologists, artists, and innovators—who all treated me like family. They inspired my interest in history, a connection to my own heritage, and so much more. I really credit this childhood experience to my passion for life-long learning.
What do you think makes Canada such a great place to explore?
There are many answers I could give here, but in summary—I think it’s the combination of
incredible culture and wild places. We have the luxury of so much space in Canada that a
traveller’s experience will never be static. As a person who travels within Canada regularly, I can attest that no matter where you go, there are always enriching learning opportunities to be had.
