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‘Mountains, sky scrapers and trains: Oh, my!’

EDMONTON — Royal Canadian Air Cadets from #30 Squadron in Estevan, Sask., got a new view of sky scrapers and the Rocky Mountains February 13–17 on their inter-provincial cadet exchange (ICE) to Edmonton.

2981 Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps (RCACC) of Edmonton hosted 20 of their winged counterparts during the three-day visit.

The cadets spent the first day riding Edmonton’s light rail transit system, viewing city landmarks, and touring the Alberta Legislature. The day ended with a Mess Dinner hosted by the Royal Canadian Legion Strathcona Branch 150. The cadets headed to Jasper on the second day for an almost three-hour hike in Maligne Canyon, the highlight of the ICE. “To see frozen waterfalls and creeks,” said 2981 RCACC CO Captain Kevin Seesequasis, “and the whole experience of gearing up, putting on ice boots and helmets and carrying ice axes – you could feel the excitement in the bus as it made its way to the drop-off point.”

Day three comprised visits to the TELUS World of Science—where the cadets watched films about the universe and space travel, learned about environmental sustainability and participated in a “CSI”-style police mystery—and to the West Edmonton Mall.

“It was great to show other cadets the culture and attractions that we have in our city,” said 2981 RCACC’s Cadet Sergeant Nicholas Schlacht. “It can be a very exhilarating experience for someone from a small city of 10 000 people, coming to a city like ours with a population of just over 1.2 million.

The ICE program promotes sports/ multicultural visits between cadet corps and squadrons from different regions. DND/CF funds the exchanges.