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SISTER 2 SISTER Magazine July 2000
The Beauty
Is in the Hike Mountain Trek Fitness
Retreat, a Different Kind of Spa
By Lurma Rackley |
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So you want a
spa vacation but you’d like to focus on serious fitness and healthy eating
more than facials, pedicures or water aerobics. And you’re actually looking
for something with a special twist, so you can come back and totally wow your
friends with your experience. You’re itching to say, “Girl, you gotta check
out this place where I just spent the best week of my life!” Wow your folks with a Trek
in the Rockies.
I’ve got you
covered. Set your sights on “Mountain Trek Fitness Retreat & Health Spa”.
Once you tell your vacation story to the gang back home, they’ll be right on
your heels, heading off to this tiny bit of heaven nestled in the heart of the
Canadian Rockies, right across the border from Washington State. The hook is
the scenery and what you do in it: walk, hike, bike, learn kayaking, sandwiched
between early morning yoga and late afternoon massage, and cap the day off with
an evening lounge in the mineral water of nearby natural hot springs. That’s
the hook. The line and sinker belongs to Wendy Pope. Her vision for a completely
healthy, safe, enjoyable, energizing yet relaxing vacation led her to open the
retreat in 1991. Wendy said,
“This is a totally different approach to relaxing and becoming beautiful from
the inside out. Our guests at the end of a week of hiking, great eating, and
good nights of sleep for the first time in a long time look better than anybody
who spent a week getting facials and hair and nails done. And it lasts. They
carry the vision and the feeling they had when they were here. They may get back
into a workaholic routine at home, but they stop and remember how it felt at the
top of the mountain.” She added that
guests are encouraged to keep up the lifestyle changes they learned at the
retreat, such as healthy eating, yoga, meditation, and getting eight hours of
sleep a night. “These are small steps for some people and they come back again
and again to get another fix and another leg in their journey” toward health. Trained
instructors parlay the fun of healthy mountain living. When Wendy
opened Mountain Trek in 1991, the typical visitor was a woman between the ages
of 40 and 65. Now, more visitors (male and female) are in the 30 to 55 range,
with younger and older women also electing to immerse themselves in the
freshness and beauty of the Kootenay Mountains. About 35% are men. Wendy thinks
the change is due to the Internet, where younger people are taking advantage of
information such as what’s found on www.hiking.com. There, viewers
see movie-backdrop gorgeous pictures and read about the intimate setting of
Mountain trek where trained yoga instructors, vegetarian chefs, hiking guides,
and fitness and massage therapists introduce 14 guests per week to better
nutrition, weight loss, and general fitness. Women in their
twenties are vacationing at such spas, Wendy said, because they “realize they
have to start younger. Girls as young as 20 and 21 are concerned that things are
starting to happen to their bodies, and they want to nip it in the bud.” After a visit
to the Ashram in California, soul-searching, and a week with her sister hiking
in the Kootenay Mountains, which reminded her of Switzerland with rugged peaks,
lush green trees and lakes, Wendy weighed the pros and cons and decided to take
the leap. It’s been uphill ever since. (You like that double entendre, don’t
you?) She opened a 12 bedroom lodge, each with its own bath, and started helping
people help themselves while having fun. Prices are
comparable to other spa vacations. For example, the Mountain Trek Hiking Week
package costs US$2,029 for seven nights and the three-night weekend package is
US$900. Climb
mountains in summer, fast in winter. At Mountain
Trek, summers are spectacular, with dry days in the 70’s and 80’s. In
spring, the daily high is in the high 60’s, and it can be a little wet. “September
and October are fantastic, getting in the mid 70’s in the day and cooling off
at night,” Wendy enthused. In winter the hiking goes on hiatus and Wendy runs
alternate programs, including a fasting retreat supervised by a naturopathic
physician….People come from far away because they can’t find anything like
this closer. We do a water or juice fast, completely supervised. People lose
weight, detox, and stop smoking. They fast for five days, then eat raw
vegetables and fruit for two days. That’s how you break a fast properly,”
Wendy explained. What does
Wendy see for the future of Mountain Trek? “I’m so pleased with what we’re
doing. I think we’re doing a great job, and it’s so personally satisfying
for the people who come here. I know you’re supposed to have five-year plans,
but I think we’ve hit the nail on the head already.” I’m convinced and will be making my reservations for a fall weekend vacation at Mountain Trek. Hope to see you there! Call 1-800-661-5161 for more information.
Mountain Trek Fitness
Retreat & Health Spa, |
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