For the 10th anniversary year of the provincial Saskatchewanderer program, Leah Mertz faced an unusual and unpredictable hurdle in her quest to highlight tourism gems in Saskatchewan — in the form of an international pandemic.
“Everything came to a screeching halt in mid-March and everyone was staying home, and that included me,” said Mertz, about the initial months of COVID-19 and the spring lockdown, which happened just weeks after she took the title of Saskatchewanderer. “It was kind of a lighthearted thing — I got renamed as the ‘sofa-wanderer,’ which was kind of fun but also just trying to make the best out of having this job to wander to also being stuck at home.”
Where usually Mertz would have been putting on some miles in the official Saskatchewanderer vehicle this spring, instead she had to get creative in how she chose to showcase some of the more interesting parts of the province through social media and blog posts.
Mertz instead turned to posting pictures and videos from her home, trying out things like virtually hosted yoga classes and ordering takeout from interesting restaurants in her home city of Saskatoon. She even reconnected with some of the adventures that past Wanderers have had over the last decade of the program.
“We’re 10 years into this program and they’ve gone to hundreds of places, at this point, so I was able to kind of throw back and share some of the things they had done,” said Mertz. “I’ve lived all over Canada and there’s literally nothing else like [the Saskatchewanderer]. It’s so unique to here.”
Later in the summer, she did have the opportunity to finally do some safe travelling of her own, and of course, there were some highlights that stood out — like the well-known but sometimes not fully appreciated Cypress Hills.
“I hadn’t really embraced or explored that place enough to appreciate how amazing it is, so Cypress Hills felt like a hidden gem even though it's a classic place,” said Mertz, who stayed in a townhouse at the resort. “I was able to properly keep to myself but also enjoy nature, get out of the bubble of the city life and do some skiing. And, you know, anytime snow is falling down in Cypress, it’s just like a winter wonderland.”
She also remembers a trip to Estevan before the pandemic measures came into place, which she thought really highlighted how different things have become since then.
Highlighting Businesses
Looking at how important the “shop local” mentality has become this year, Mertz also felt that the Saskatchewanderer program might play an even more pertinent role in promoting the at-home possibilities in the future.
“I think people have every right to be hesitant, like ‘why do we need a Saskatchewanderer right now?’ when everyone should be staying home and I understand that completely,” said Mertz. “But I think this program is all about highlighting local and showing ways people can support, whether that’s even just giving a follow on a Facebook page. It's not even about travelling. Sometimes it's just about raising awareness of these amazing places that we have, and I think that’s really going to be the focus for next year.”
Mertz is concluding her year as the program’s touring personality, wrapping up an experience that she feels was an incredible learning opportunity.
“I’ve definitely learned a lot, personally, and it's an amazing job,” said Mertz. “It’s very difficult to feel like you’re representing your whole province, and I know I came up short in some ways, but I really tried to keep an open mind [and] I learned to appreciate what we have here, especially with travel being limited this year.”
While the circumstances during her tenure didn’t lend themselves to as much video production as Mertz was hoping, she did feel challenged and engaged with the position — in a good way.
“It did become really challenging and it was honestly kind of tough to adapt to more photo posts, because doing video productions at this time was just a little bit more multilayered with the safety precautions,” said Mertz.
There was also an emotional aspect this year that Mertz didn’t expect, especially interacting with so many local businesses and attractions during a tough spell for tourism.
“Talking and interacting with businesses that are struggling, I obviously wasn’t prepared for that [and] I wish I could give them all exposure because they deserve it,” said Mertz.
As a naturally adventurous soul, Mertz said she went into the position hoping for one more unique adventure that would make use of her background in freelance content creation, and the program certainly delivered.
“This just felt like the perfect amalgamation of video production and social media and photography, so I was just like, ‘okay, I think I’ll be up for one last adventure and then I’ll just be tired in my thirties,’” joked Mertz. “It has definitely taught me so much about what I can offer on social media and keeping it real, and it’s been a huge thing I’m thankful for and despite it being an odd and interesting year, I think it was sort of a unique time to be the Wanderer.”
Currently, the program is looking to name someone new to take on the mantle of Saskatchewanderer for 2021, with applications open until Dec. 10 on the program website.
For the next Wanderer, Mertz had just a little advice from her — admittedly unprecedented — experience.
“I’m super excited to see who takes over and there’s going to be a huge need to show people what they can support in their own backyards,” said Mertz. “I think as long as they stay true to their own style and be themselves, they can give people a really good appreciation for what we have here. I’m excited to pass it on.”
