A certain mixture of whimsy and derring-do is required to shove off down (or up) the New or Gauley River with scant protection aside from a helmet, life vest and one�s compatriots. It�s a choice that could be so easily avoided, but that wouldn�t make sense to the proud and colorful characters who have long been shooting these rapids, some of the most popular and treacherous in the country. Here, Jay Young, a raft guide turned writer, leads readers through the local lore and history of the ...

Mobility - the movements of people, things, and ideas, as well as their associated cultural meanings - has been a key factor in shaping Canadians' perceptions of and interactions with their country. Approaching the burgeoning field of environmental history in Canada through the lens of mobility reveals some of the distinctive ways in which Canadians have come to terms with the country's climate and landscape. Spanning Canada's diverse regions, throughout its history, from the closing of th...

Taking us on walks through Paris, New York, Toronto, North Vancouver and Singapore, Mary Soderstrom examines how cites have changed the lives of ordinary citizens—in positive and negative ways. Making the city walkable again is crucial. The author looks to the future and suggests ways in which we can reorganize our lives and our cities. The idea that a city might not be walkable would never occur to anyone who lived before 1800. Over the past 200 years there have been dramatic changes to o...

Few stories in the annals of railroading are as compelling as the construction, evolution, and astounding successes of the Canadian Pacific and Canadian National railways. This sprawling volume combines two of Voyageur Press' most successful Railroad Color History titles into one volume taking in the grand scope of both railroads. Author Tom Murray presents fastidiously researched and concisely presented histories of each railroad, along with more than 300 photographs, including rare archi...

On his personal quest to check off the best of his home country, travel writer and host Robin Esrock catalogues must-sees, including nature, food, culture, history, adrenaline rushes, and quirky Canadiana. After spending years crafting the definitive Canadian Bucket List, he’s packed in enough for a lifetime, at least. In this special excerpt, Esrock takes us to the remote heart of Canada’s Inuit culture, a land of long winters, polar bears, and vast distances, for some amazing experiences...

From the number of kilometers of coastline to the stories behind those weird place names (hello Ecum Secum) to profiles of Joe Howe and Alexander Keith, there is no book as comprehensive as the Nova Scotia Book of Everything. There is also no book more fun. Well known Nova Scotians like Premier Rodney MacDonald weigh in on subjects like the five Nova Scotians he admires most; Ashley MacIssac tells us his five greatest Nova Scotians; Joel Plaskett gives up his favorite hangouts. Th...

"Torngat Mountains, A New Waiver" is Noah Richler's contribution to Northwords, a cross-platform project that takes urban Canadian writers to some of the world’s most extreme environments.Introduced by award-winning journalist and radio personality Shelagh Rogers, Northwords is a collection of stories written by acclaimed Canadian authors as they experienced one of Canada’s most awe-inspiring northern national parks Torngat Mountains National Park, the country’s n...

Edmund Zavitz (1875–1968) rescued Ontario from the ravages of increasingly more powerful floods, erosion, and deadly fires. Wastelands were talking over many hectares of once-flourishing farmlands and towns. Sites like the Oak Ridges Moraine were well on their way to becoming a dust bowl and all because of extensive deforestation. Zavitz held the positions of chief forester of Ontario, deputy minister of forests, and director of reforestation. His first pilot reforestation project was in 1...

Quill & Quire cited Unbuilt Toronto as a book filled with "well-researched, often gripping tales of grand plans," while Canadian Architect said that it is "an impressively researched exploration of never-realized architectural and master-planning projects intended for the city." Now Unbuilt Toronto 2 provides an all-new, fascinating return to the "Toronto that might have been."Discover the scrapyard statue planned for University Avenue, the flapp...

An exploration of the unique and unusual places in Ontario that are steeped in history and folklore.Using updated and archival material from Discover Ontario, a popular radio show that ran from 1987 until 2004, author Terry Boyle invites you to explore the hidden, unusual, and unknown sites and stories from around Ontario.Revisit an era of mobsters and rum-runners during the years of prohibition. Traverse the deadly waves of the Hudson Bay and visi...

He began life as the sickly son of a landless Polish immigrant. In the next sixty years he was to wrest from the wilderness a thousand acres along Florida's most breathtaking jungle river. At age 25 Vince Nelson "disappeared" up the wild and scenic Loxahatchee to escape the glare of publicity after his brother had killed a fellow trapper in a dispute over money. After carving our a cabin, dock and outbuildings, he opened "Trapper's Zoo and Jungle Garden." Over the years be became known as ...

In Down the Wild Cape Fear, novelist and nonfiction writer Philip Gerard invites readers onto the fabled waters of the Cape Fear River and guides them on the 200-mile voyage from the confluence of the Deep and Haw Rivers at Mermaid Point all the way to the Cape of Fear on Bald Head Island. Accompanying the author by canoe and powerboat are a cadre of people passionate about the river, among them a river guide, a photographer, a biologist, a river keeper, and a boat captain. Histor...