Meet Helen from Quebec, Canada

Helen has been enthralled by caves since childhood. She is a geologist/speleologist/teacher that has explored around 50 caves all over the world – so many that she nearly lost track! Le Fourneau, a private cave in Quebec, was the first cave she explored with her father when she was eleven years old. She said that Le Fourneau was her scariest caving experience due to the fear of the unknown. To traverse Le Fourneau, one must pass through a narrow tunnel over rushing water by holding yourself up on the walls with your hands and feet. At the end of the tunnel, to exit you must jump from the top of a small waterfall into the water below. Helen said that when she got to this part, she was petrified to jump. Her father was in the water below and told her to just fall. When she did, he caught her in his arms. This was the moment that her love of caving came alive! She has also explored the original Lascaux Cave in France. Within Lascaux, there are over 600 cave paintings dating back to approximately 17,000 years old! The original portion of Lascaux cave is no longer open to the public for the sake of preserving the paintings. She never had the desire to be married or have children. The only thing she wanted to do was spend her life working in and exploring nature. It is her passion. Her husband, Erik, also happens to be a geologist. After they married, Helen went back to school and got a second degree in teaching. Helen and Erik eventually decided to have a family. They struggled with pregnancy and carrying to term. Helen, sadly, suffered six miscarriages. On their seventh attempt, they were lucky