The Lure of the Chilcotin

The latest addition to TouchWood Editions’ Classics West Collection, Klondike Cattle Drive is the colourful tale of a formidable trek undertaken by legendary Cariboo rancher Norman Lee.

In 1898, Lee set out to drive 200 head of cattle from his home in the Chilcotin area of B.C. to the Klondike goldfields—a distance of 1,500 miles. He was gambling both his cattle and his life. This is his story, derived from the journal he kept, his letters and the loyal men who accompanied him. Throughout the daunting weeks of coping with mud, cold and sheer bad luck, Lee kept his sense of humour. When he returned from his Yukon trek, he rewrote the notes from his journal, illustrating his story with his own cartoons and sketches. He completed his manuscript around the turn of the century, but it sat untouched until 1960, when it was published by Howard Mitchell of Mitchell Press, Vancouver.

Getting three trucks and two horses stuck in the mud on "a good road" into BC's wild, remote interior was just the start of Bruce Watt's Chilcotin adventures—and it was his honeymoon, too. The wildlife, landscape and quirky, down-to-earth people captivated Bruce, and despite the hard work and challenging conditions, the Watts put down roots, raising a family, alongside herds of cattle and horses.

A consummate storyteller, Bruce tells it like it was—and perhaps still is for many people calling this place home. These yarns capture the adventure and humour of running a ranch—from roping cougars to close calls on cliff edges and other "typical" accidents. His stories of chasing horses, navigating the backcountry and getting five kids off to school have a charm all their own.

Babes in the woods. That’s how Ruth and Cliff Kopas were described by one of many colourful characters the pair encountered on their amazing journey across the Rockies through to British Columbia’s west coast in 1933.

Married on the day they left on their dangerous trek, Ruth and Cliff were eager for adventure, and their courageous spirits and resourceful minds made up for any experience they lacked. Their motive was to fulfill Cliff’s childhood dream of following in Alexander Mackenzie’s footsteps to the Pacific.

For four months, the two slogged, scrambled and sloshed their way through some of the roughest terrain in North America. Their horses were their loyal companions, and the towering peaks, azure lakes and shimmering skies that greeted them were their reward. Their story, full of excitement and suspense, is peppered with humorous observations, historical anecdotes and a deep love for the Canadian wilderness.

It was the summer of ’43 on a Cariboo ranch. He was 12 and had to become a man. If you were a man, you could become a cowboy. Join the author on this nostalgic look back on the joys, frustrations and observations of growing up and discovering where he belongs.

Excerpt from Eldon Lee's foreword: “This book by Alan Fry is probably the best book ever written on ranch life in the Cariboo. His account of everyday events is so perceptive and so true to the mark that all we country types yearn to re-experience its joys, and its miseries."

The Ranch on the Cariboo is a good book and while it may not make a pretty sight to the tractor jockeys, by damn it is authentic; I should know because I was raised on a similar ranch just 18 miles north.”

John's career as a bear guide spans Alaskan bear hunting from the immediate post war period to the present time. He has guided black and brown bear hunters for all these years and polar bear hunters for 18 of the 20 years it was a popular sport.