Chilcotin yarns

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 hilarious adventures--and it was his honeymoon, too. When the newly married Watt moved there in 1948 to take up ranching, he was a just a kid in his early 20s. He and his wife fell in love with Big Creek, three hours southwest of Williams Lake, and its wildlife, beautiful landscapes and quirky, down-to-earth people. Despite the tough work and difficult conditions, they put down roots and stayed, raising a family of five, along with herds of cattle and horses.

This consummate storyteller tells it like was--and still is, perhaps, for many still making this place home. Bruce's hilarious stories of chasing horses and getting five kids off to school (until they were a ripe eight or nine years old and could drive themselves) have a charm all their own. These yarns capture the adventure and especially the humour of running a ranch--roping cougars, having close calls on cliff edges and all the other "usual" accidents. Watt's cowboy honesty and campfire-style storytelling are irresistible.