British Columbia

A one-stop resource for hiking backpackers in beautiful British Columbia. Planning your next backpacking adventure? This book covers all the essentials including: 40 overnight hiking trails: discover the many different routes that BC has to offer Packing tips: take only the most essential items with you (plus a few comforts) Permitting: find out what permits you’ll need, and where to get them Camp set-up: tips for where to pitch your tent and how to find water Environmental impact: learn how to Leave No Trace behind in the wilderness This book features backpacking routes from the North Shore up to Pemberton and Lytton and from the Sunshine Coast out to the Similkameen Valley. Beautiful photographs showcase what you’ll see along the way: mountain peaks, alpine meadows, waterfalls, old-growth forests, and more. Every backpacking route in the book includes bonus features: Trail maps and route descriptions Elevation, distance and time information Points of cultural and natural history Pre-planning hints about fees, permits, and reservations Suggested side trips and points of particular interest Backpacking in Southwestern British Columbia also shares options for extending an overnight excursion to several nights or a week, and for selecting hikes that match your timeline/fitness level.

In this beautifully crafted collection of essays, Cole Harris reflects on the strategies of colonialism in British Columbia during the first 150 years after the arrival of European settlers. The pervasive displacement of indigenous people by the newcomers, the mechanisms by which it was accomplished, and the resulting effects on the landscape, social life, and history of Canada's western-most province are examined through the dual lenses of post-colonial theory and empirical data. By providing a compelling look at the colonial construction of the province, the book revises existing perceptions of the history and geography of British Columbia.

Like many British Columbians in 2017, Claudia Cornwall found herself glued to the news about the disastrous wildfires across the province. Her worry was personal: her cabin at Sheridan Lake had been in the family for sixty years and was now in danger of destruction. Cornwall, a long-time writer, was stricken not just by her own experience, but by the many moving stories she came across about the fires—so she began collecting them. She met with people from BC communities of Sheridan Lake, Ashcroft, Cache Creek, 16 Mile House, Lac La Hache, Quesnel, Williams Lake, Hanceville-Riske Creek and Clinton. She hoped to be a conduit for the voices she heard—for those who fought the fires raging around them, those who were evacuated and displaced, and those who could do nothing but watch as their homes burned. She conducted over fifty hours of interviews with ranchers, cottagers, Indigenous residents, RCMP officers, evacuees, store and resort owners, search and rescue volunteers, firefighters and local government officials. Presented in British Columbia in Flames are stories that illustrate the importance of community. During the 2017 wildfires, people looked after strangers who had no place to go. They shared information. They helped each other rescue and shelter animals. They kept stores open day and night to supply gas, food and comfort to evacuees. This memoir, at once journalistic and deeply personal, highlights the strength with which BC communities can and will come together to face a terrifying force of nature.

Politics, Policy, and Government in British Columbia examines the political life of Canada's dynamic Pacific province. Each of the seventeen chapters, written by well-known experts, provides an up-to-date portrait and analysis of one of the many faces of B.C. politics. Taken together they provide a clear and comprehensive overview of the dominant themes and issues that have been the distinguishing features of the province's political life.

This book tells the story of the province’s geology and the history of its living creatures. The first edition of Geology of British Columbia,, with its accessible but rigorous science, struck a chord with readers. Since it was first published, theories about plate tectonics and the geological history of British Columbia have evolved, and this new edition reflects the current thinking. This book also features updated content throughout, seven new maps, and a number of new photographs. A brand new appendix lists and describes key geological sites in British Columbia, adding a field-guide component to this informative book that will engage readers and compel them to go see these rocks for themselves.

In British Columbia by the Road, Ben Bradley takes readers on an unprecedented journey through the history of roads, highways, and motoring in British Columbia's Interior, a remote landscape composed of plateaus and interlocking valleys, soaring mountains and treacherous passes. Challenging the idea that the automobile offered travelers the freedom of the road and a view of unadulterated nature, Bradley shows that boosters, businessmen, conservationists, and public servants manipulated what drivers and passengers could and should view from the comfort of their vehicles. Although cars and roads promised freedom, they offered drivers a curated view of the landscape that shaped the province's image in the eyes of residents and visitors alike.

Elephant Crossing. Houdini Needles. Miniskirt, Tickletoeteaser Tower, and Why Not Mountain. These are just some of the many names of places, rivers, mountains, and lakes that you will come across in the newest edition of British Columbia Place Names. This classic which, in its various editions, has sold over 29,000 copies, covers about 2,500 geographical features, cities, towns, and smaller communities in the province. The book abounds with fascinating historical facts, stories, and remarkable characters involved with the names of towns, cities, rivers, lakes, mountains, and islands. The selection was determined by the geographical importance of the feature as well as story of the naming. In the introduction the authors deal with the stages by which B.C. acquired its place names, the history of research into those names, and the categories into which they fall. The latter range from the honorific and commemorative to the comic and disrespectful. Aboriginal names receive particular attention. The location of each place is clearly indicated and the text is accompanied by detailed maps. Brief biographical accounts of persons with places named after them as well as an abundance of anecdotes make this a fascinating book for browsers and an invaluable resource for historians.

A unique field guide brimming with detailed descriptions, vibrant photos, and fascinating facts about British Columbia?s most common?and most distinctive?mushroom species.