Richard Crouse

“500 Days in the Wild,” a new documentary from director Dianne Whelan now playing in theatres, isn’t exactly “Planes, Trains and Automobiles.” It more like “Hiking, Biking, Paddling, Snowshoeing and Skiing.”

In 2015 British Columbia filmmaker-photographer Whelan was disillusioned, feeling the effects of a recent break-up and worried about the state of the world.

As a way to reconnect with the planet and herself, she undertook the most grueling film shoot of her career, documenting her journey across the 24,000 kilometres, over land and water, of the 487 different trails and multiple waterways that make up the Trans Canada Trail. The longest trail in the world, it connects the Atlantic, Arctic, and Pacific Oceans.

Without a firm schedule—she ripped up her written plan ten days into the journey—Whelan spent much of the next six years completing the trail.

Culled from 800 hours of footage, the new movie showcases the visual poetry of the country—starry nights captured by her camera, the communing with nature, open spaces untouched by modern life—and danger in the form of bears, hypothermia and, at the beginning of the trip, of strangers, like two hunters she encounters on a rainy night.

The film highlights the gorgeous landscapes of the trail, and the challenges of navigating it, but it’s the inner journey that fascinates.

Whelan finds personal serenity through isolation, introspection and intimate moments. What began with disillusionment, ends with a newfound appreciation of the kindness of people, Indigenous beliefs and nature. She emerges changed, but most importantly, without a trace of the cynicism that characterized her mindset at the beginning.

“500 Days in the Wild” captures the expansiveness of the journey with beautiful, often eye-popping photography and contains moments of high drama alongside some lighter sections, but it’s Whelan’s vulnerability and personal journey that illuminates.