Jewish Encounters in the Wild

The truth is, Michoel Harari barely knew himself. As director of Yeshiva Outdoor Adventure Camp, Rabbi Harari is used to finding himself beyond the beaten path, way beyond. But what brought him to this tiny park at the edge of Chilliwack, British Columbia was a quirky sequence of delays, changed plans, and U-turns. What he eventually found gave him a newfound appreciation for Divine Providence.

On this particular August morning, YOA’S 26 campers had planned to recite their morning prayers at the campsite Canada. When the manager told them they needed to vacate within 20 minutes, those plans were scrapped. Thankfully, says Harari, “it was two weeks into camp and the campers were very efficient at that point.”

Less than 15 minutes later, their tents and camping gear were ready to go. Driving down the dirt roads, Harari and the counselors conferred about finding a spot where the group could pray. Someone suggested a nearby park, but Harari decided to swing a quick U-turn and return to the scenic vista.

There, the campers set up shop, unpacked their Tefillin, and prepared to pray. That’s when Moshe walked out of the woods. The gentleman, an Israeli, was on his daily (doctor-prescribed) hike.

It was the first day of the Hebrew month of Elul, and Moshe’s father’s yahrtzeit. The night before, as he lit his memorial candle, Moshe mourned the fact that he wouldn’t be able to say kaddish for his father. Lacking the necessary quorum of ten men, he had never recited the prayer for his late father.

But that morning, he did. He also had an aliyah and put on Tefillin. Since moving to this remote Canadian town 26 years ago, Moshe has not seen another Jew. According to camper Abie Daphna, “he told us that he had left Israel to escape his Jewish roots. “

“I can’t say the campers were shocked by the encounter,” acknowledges Harari. “By this point in the summer, things like this were normal.”

Indeed, over the course of the summer, campers encountered Jews on sailboats and in the mountains. In Great Falls, Montana, Harari bumped into the only local Jewish family. (They recognized him because of his distinctive yarmulke.) The mother told him they had been trying to get in touch with YOA for three years, going so far as tracking their annual itineraries, because they were so impressed with the camp.

Though it is a touring camp (YOA visited Montana, Canada, and Washington) “traveling is not a means to an end,” insists Harari. “Our emphasis is on experiential education.” Beyond the interesting encounters and beautiful views, campers ended the summer as certified able-bodied sailors and were trained in bear and food safety, orienteering, search and rescue, water treatment, and weather determination.