Bronc Busters and Hay Sloops tells the story of ranching in the West from the beginning of the Great War until 1960. Cowboy soldiers, bronc busters, First Nations, upper-crust Englishmen and the strong, capable women of ranching country . . . theirs are the stories told in this book. Some of these characters are larger than life, such as:Joe Coutlee, cow boss of the Douglas Lake Ranch, whose booming voice gave him the nickname “Roaring Bill”;Grover Hance, w...

Despite being neighbouring provinces with long ranching histories, British Columbia and Alberta saw their ranching techniques develop quite differently. As most ranching styles were based on one of the two dominant styles in use south of the border, BC ranchers tended to adopt the California style whereas Alberta took its lead from Texas. But the different practices actually go back much further. Cattle cultures in southwestern Spain, sub-Saharan Africa and the British highlands all shaped...

Remarkable cattle drives, famous ranches and legendary characters are at the heart of Ken Mather's account of the early days of ranching in British Columbia. These are stories about drovers, ranchers, cowboys and "mud pups" (the remittance men of the ranching industry). You'll meet such people asthe flamboyant Harper brothers, drovers who went on to become the biggest landowners in BC, with interests in the Harper, Perry, Hat Creek and famous Gang ranchesJohnny Wils...

Steve's life could have ended - should have ended. He should have died in the middle of nowhere, far from his family, alone in freezing fog on an isolated pathway, never to complete his ill-advised walk started one winter's day.He didn't die, he was saved, rescued and repaired. He went through improvements - to his body, his mind and his abilities. He has powers of healing that are unequalled and unheard of but other things have changed too.How will he cope? How will his fa...

Steve's life could have ended - should have ended. He should have died in the middle of nowhere, far from his family, alone in freezing fog on an isolated pathway, never to complete his ill-advised walk started one winter's day.He didn't die, he was saved, rescued and repaired. He went through improvements - to his body, his mind and his abilities. He has powers of healing that are unequalled and unheard of but other things have changed too.How will he cope? How will his fa...

A Ride To Remember is a story to keep, from a time when horses carried us over mountain trails, there was no chopper, no I-phone, no GPS, no plastic wrap, but we had everything we needed. It was too good to be true. We were asked to come along on a wonderful horseback trip in the Rocky Mountains in 1947. We always intended to write about our adventure, now two of us who are left are doing just that. From the vantage point of more than 6 decades, we relive our journey through "A Ride To Rem...

This book is a celebration of life. Its astonishing view is from the perspective of someone living a simple, isolated life in the Rocky Mountains as a mountain man. Sylvan Ambrose Hart was born in the Oklahoma Territory in 1906. In the 1930's, while still a young man, he walked into the Rocky Mountains and designed a unique life for himself in the wilds - hunting, fishing, trapping, panning gold, crafting his own tools, weapons, shelter, and clothes. For almost fifty years he lived the lif...

Born Under a Stump is a biography of Bill Hulet, a legendary bear hunter. Working for various timber concerns, he thinned the black bear who ruined thousands of young trees on the Olympic Peninsula tree farms in Washington State. He quite possibly killed more bear than anyone who ever lived. His life also embraced the era of old growth logging.

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 ...

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 peop...

My Arizona Adventures is the true first-person account of an authentic American pioneer. When Tom Sanders came to Arizonas central highlands there was nothing there; there were no roads, no towns, no law, and no protection from marauding Indians. There was nothing there but opportunities for the strong, resolute and lucky.The year was 1863, Arizona had just become a separate Territory and its vast central interior was the last unknown area of the United States. That change...

Del Burk farmed, ranched and guided big-game hunters in some of the richest wild-life areas of Canada.  The biography covers a recent patch of history, but a patch already gone.  The farm equipment he knew now belong in museums, and the ranching practices of the fifties and sixties have largely simply disappeared.  Where Del's big-game guiding experiences took him over trails meant only for horses, there are now paved roads or the rutted paths of ATVs.   Del's s...