Introduction to Free Spirit Tours

The Georgian Triangle area has so many places to explore and lots of opportunities for outdoor recreation, but for the untrained adventurer these can seem daunting. In this area you can go rock climbing, caving, paddling, hiking and more, but if you don’t know the area you may struggle to find places to do these activities. Moreover, some of these activities can be dangerous if done without the proper care and expertise. This is where Matt Code and Jennie Elmslie of Free Spirit Tours come in. Free Spirit Tours has been offering adventure tours of the area since 1998 and have the knowledge and experience to help you explore the Georgian Triangle area to its fullest potential.

How Free Spirit Tours got their start

The Georgian Triangle area has so many places to explore and lots of opportunities for outdoor recreation, but for the untrained adventurer, these can seem daunting. In this area, you can go rock climbing, caving, paddling, hiking and more, but if you don’t know the area you may struggle to find places to do these activities. Moreover, some of these activities can be dangerous if done without proper care and expertise. This is where Matt Code and Jennie Elmslie of Free Spirit Tours come in. Free Spirit Tours has been offering adventure tours of the area since 1998 and have the knowledge and experience to help you explore the Georgian Triangle area to its fullest potential.

The Evolution of Free Spirit Tours

When the adventure tour company originally started with rock-climbing and caving in the area because that was what the two guides knew the best. Slowly each year as Matt and Jennie have been able to explore the area more, they have added canoeing and kayaking on the Beaver River and Nottawasaga River, paddling on Georgian Bay, guided hikes and snowshoeing. They have also partnered with local Georgian Hills Vineyard to do a snowshoe and wine tasting in the winter and a paddle and wine in the summer which Matt tells me has been very popular with bachelorette parties. For bachelor parties, they do tours of multiple breweries in the area which Matt says is great for shoulder seasons when the weather is not as great. The other major portion of Free Spirit Tours is their kids’ camps in which they do all of the activities that Free Spirit Tours provides: rock climbing, caving, canoeing, kayaking, sea-kayaking, and hiking on the trails.

The Free Spirit Tours Difference

What sets Free Spirit Tours aside from other adventure tours companies in the area is the length of time they have been doing them. With 19 years in business, they have unparalleled experience with the activities and the area. Matt adds that they are also probably best known for their guides: “like us, they are very passionate about the outdoors and sharing their love of identifying plants and trees and stuff, and the hikes and making it very informative and interesting”. Moreover, this area absolutely fuels this passion for the outdoors. “This location has just given us the opportunity to grow,” Matt says, “because this area’s got so many rivers and the lake, and the Bruce Trail cutting through it, it just gives us so many opportunities to spread our fingers and roots into the area”.

What Free Spirit Tours is Passionate about

Aside from the actual nature of the area, Matt tells me that he is really passionate about the people and getting to share an experience with them that they otherwise would not be able to have. People come either from the city or locally and they don’t know about the opportunities that are available or where they can take advantage of them and Free Spirit Tours provides that for them. “Just connecting with the people and sharing with them an experience that is unique and fun and connecting with nature that’s what we love”.

Free Spirit tours and the Community

Free Spirit Tours is also very involved in the local community. Something new they have started providing is a forest school in Thornbury and Collingwood. This program takes students aged 4-12 out of their regular classroom setting one day a week and puts them in the outdoors to connect with nature. “Kids thrive in the outdoors’ . . . ‘so this just gives them a chance to get outside and connect with the earth’ . . . ‘ and get that same passion that we have but with a deeper understanding at a younger age,” Matt explains. Furthermore, 6 years ago they started the Free Spirit Garden which is a way to educate youth and adults on how to grow their own food. They have partnered with a local landowner in Collingwood that donated an acre of land where they started a community garden which now they rent out plots for people to grow their own food. This garden is also conveniently located between a couple of high schools so they run workshops for high school students as well as adults on how to grow your own food. Matt says that this is another way for them to connect to the community and to give back and promote healthy living.

Get in touch with Free Spirit Tours today!

In all, “[Free Spirit Tours] offers a unique outdoor experience that educates [the public] on the area and how to safely experience nature whether it is paddling on a river, climbing a rock-face, or going into a cave” Matt says. All of the activities, for the most part, start at a beginner level for people that have no experience and then there are also tours for more experienced adventurers to get a higher understanding and higher level of experience. So if you have always wanted to get outside and discover our area, give Matt and Jennie a call at Free Spirit Tours. No matter the activity you are interested in, they have something for everyone to get out there, get active and get back to nature!