Valentina Palkina

She graduated from Sholokhov Moscow State University, Department of Pedagogy and Psychology. The teacher, creator, and leader of the travel club «Doroga» («The Road»).

Quotes

• There is a saying:» To be in raptures to a true tourist, is just to be on a hike.
• Inspiration floats around, I can sit quietly and then exclaim: «And let's...», and everyone is already laughing, they know that another idea was born.
• It is okay to stain the clothes, the main thing is not to stain your heart.
• If you do not know what to speak about, then speak the truth.
• Do not be afraid of the enemy. The most he can do is kill you. Do not be afraid of a friend. The most he can do is betray you. Fear the indifferent, for with their tacit consent all crimes are committed on Earth.

My story

I was born in Lysva and have lived here all my life. I graduated from the Kungur Pedagogical School branch and wanted to become a primary school teacher, but then I worked for one day and began to do tourist and local history activities at school #13 in 1993.

We in the family archive have a photo where the father in the deep forest with a shotgun behind him pushes the baby carriage with me, so hiking and taiga are with me since childhood. Now I have two sons: the first went on his first winter hike at the age of one month, and the second at four.

My task was to prepare children for participation in tourist rallies of school, city, and region, as well as in competitions in speleotechnics and orienteering, excursions and expeditions. Gradually, the children grew up and became helpers, and my family also helped.

About a year the club lived without a name, and then it was born in itself. The road is the whole life, and the motto is worthy: «The road is life, the truth is on the road.»

After the college in Lysva, I entered Sholokhov Moscow State University: at that time it was the only place where organizers of tourist and local history work were prepared. After graduation, I was offered to stay at the experimental children's tourist center and to defend a Ph.D. thesis. But the «Doroga» club in Lysva was already there, and I thought: «If I accept the offer, what will I say to the children, how can I dare to meet their glances?» Of course, sometimes the thought comes: «How would it be if I stayed in the capital?» — but I have no regrets about the decision because I took the high road. Two children from our club followed in my wake, studied in the same specialty in Moscow, but did not return to Lysva. I am sorry that many of them are leaving.

In 1999, a school newspaper was born in our club, it still exists, called Plantain. The motto of the newspaper is humorous: «Every plantain like his own Road.» There were two supplements to the newspaper, «Pit-a-tap» with the route descriptions and «Spider's Web,» where we collected the most exciting tourist stories from the Internet.

In 2001, «Doroga» became a city club, we received the status of a separate organization. We began to develop various growth areas: for families with children, veterans and pensioners, youth.

I always wanted to make competitions for everyone, not only for athletes. For the first time, we have embodied this idea in the winter park orienteering event «Apelsinovye Bega» («Orange Runs»), which still go on. And also we struck out summer competitions, they are called «Shokoladnye pobegushki» («Chocolate run errands»). We are proud of the «Partisan paths of the Urals» night orienteering, we conduct it for 25 years already.

Lysva is a very active city concerning tourism, with rich traditions, here I have many interesting favorite places, but each of them needs its own mood. There are a lot of plans for «Doroga.» I would like to finish the expedition «Every child has its own Everest.» At this expedition, the children and we gradually climb the highest points of Lysva, Lysva District, Perm Territory, the Urals, Russia, and the world. Meanwhile, we reached Elbrus. There is still a big expedition to the hero cities, we have already visited 8 from 15 of them. I am overfilled with ideas, yet don't have enough time to accomplish everything.