Recommend me a book.

the Tiger by John Valiant is a great read- it is about a Amur Tiger in the Amur region of Eastern Russia, part of Russia that used to be referred to Siberia attacking a village/ homes and killing quite a large number before hunters started going after it. It goes quite in depth about the history of the region both past and present, as well as how it is now more economically linked with China and Korea than Russia itself. It is also very interesting because it talks about how just prior to ww2 the Amur tigers were down to about 40 or so, but because the war forced every man with a rifle to go west to fight the Germans, the population has come back.
 
Mr. Goat, I don't think what you sent me would high jack the thread. In fact it fits right in to the thread, due to the book by Ralph Edwards being discussed and you having a long talk with Ralph Edwards son.
I am taking the liberty to post here what you sent me, then I will reply to it on here.
Bruce


Bruce

In those days, about 20 yrs. ago my agility and stamina could probably match that of a goat. There is a provincial park right at the foot of the mountains just off the highway going into Bella Coola. We were staying in there at the time, the Atnarko River, or part of it came right behind were we had the camper parked. I wanted to go on a hike, the pamphlet info at the park was confusing as how long it would take to hike in there. I left at 0700 in the am from the camp ground and walked until 2pm. never reached Hunlan Falls which was the goal. So started back out at a quicker pace to be out before dark. I never new who the Edwards family were at the time until I met John Edwards on the trail on the way out. he was heading in. We had a quite a chat. Ignorance is bliss as I had no idea I was hiking in such prime grizzly, and black bear country until John Edwards filled me in on that fact. He said the camp ground was the worst place for black bears and we were standing chatting in prime grizzly territory. He was very surprised that I had not seen at least one bear. He said it was nearly impossible to hike from the camp ground to where I did and return without at least one bear encounter. He gave me his best advice on how to handle myself when I met a bear. I did notice he was carrying a Winchester lever rifle in a heavy calibre. Well I did the impossible and made it back to the camper without seeing hide nor hair of a bear. Seen lots of bear crap but not the fella who left it which was okay with me. A couple days later we were in Bella Coola and I bought the book on the Edwards family, most interesting.
Pete
 
It was in the 1950s that four of us went into Lonesome Lake and I landed on the lake near the outlet of the Atnarko. The Edwards farm was near the south end of the lake, another four miles, or so, further on. I encountered Ralph Edwards at least twice, while flying. He had a reputation of taking lots of chances and Trudy Edwards once told me that he turned his aircraft over twice, in rough water!
I tried to walk into the foot of Hunlen Falls, the highest water fall in Canada, if measured by the straight fall, over 1,300 feet. The gorge going in was narrow, between sheer rock walls and scary. I got some pictures of it, some where.
For many years the regulations forbid fishing in the Atnarko, because the powers to be thought sport fishing may endanger the big salmon run!
Also, at that time Tweedsmuir Park was miles north of Highway 20 and there was no park anywhere near the hiking trail in.
 
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I popped into my local Chapters store on the weekend and picked up a copy of FIELD AND FOREST: CLASSIC HUNTING STORIES. A great book full of a variety of hunting stories, many of which have been recommended in this thread. I couldn't resist reading a few of the stories prior to setting out on my hunt but will save most of them for those upcoming nights in the cabin.
 
Great Heart: The History of a Labrador Adventure by James W. Davidson and John Rugge.

"In 1903 Leonidas Hubbard was commissioned by an outdoors magazine to explore Labrador by canoe. Joined by his best friend, Dillon Wallace, and a Scots-Cree guide, George Elson, Hubbard hoped to make a name for himself as an adventurer. But plagued by poor judgment and bad luck, his party turned back and Hubbard died of starvation just thirty miles from camp. Two years later, Hubbard's widow, Mina, and Wallace returned to Labrador, leading rival expeditions to complete the original trek and fix blame for the earlier failure. Their race made headlines from New York to Nova Scotia-and it makes fascinating reading today in this widely acclaimed reconstruction of the epic saga. The authors draw on contemporary accounts and their own journeys in Labrador to evoke the intense drama to men and women pushed beyond the limits of endurance in one of the great true adventures of our century."

A-M-A-Z-I-N-G story, and a fairly easy read too...
 
If you want a good laugh, Bob Bell's "Oh No, We're Gonna Die!" is a hilarious selection of short stories based on his personal experiences while hunting, fishing, and flying in Alaska and the Yukon.

Jeff Cooper's "Yukon Journal" is the journal the 20 year old Cooper kept while on a big game hunt in the Yukon. His observations, attitudes, and writing style are remarkable for a youngster. You can order this one from Jeff Cooper Books.

Canadiana, "Three Against the Wilderness", by Eric Collier.
 
"The Sheltering Desert" Henno Martin, non-fiction, scientifically minded Germans hide from the Reich in the deserts of Namibia, and learn back skills millennia old to survive.

"Into Africa" Martin Dugard, non-fiction, one of the better narratives on Livingston and Stanley as they crossed unexplored Africa on foot, ultimately meeting right before Livingston's death. Essentially a brash American kid decided he would go find a Royal Geographic society member lost in Africa when no one else had, on foot, and pulled it off.

"The Tiger", John Valiant, non-fiction, the story of an anti poaching team following a particularly savage and methodical man eating Siberian Tiger that seemed to target its victims specifically in 1990's crumbling Russia.
 
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