High on the Big Stone Heart is a collection of vibrant and entertaining essays on the people and places of Canada’s Boreal North as seen through the eyes of one of the country’s most celebrated writers of non-fiction. Accompany Charles Wilkins as he ranges across the wilds of northern Quebec; ventures deep into the subarctic Yukon in search of caribou; and tracks the north coast of Lake Superior, the world’s most elegant and mysterious body of fresh water. Meet Murray Monk, trapper extraordinaire, and Barney Giesler, the king of the wooden boat builders. Trace the route of the Toronto Maple Leafs’ Bill Barilko, star of the 1951 Stanley Cup Final, on his last and fatal fishing trip to James Bay. Join Maurice "Rocket" Richard on the backwoods adventures that sustained him throughout his troubled career. Follow Wilkins himself as he embarks on a wilderness survival test with nothing but the clothes on his back. This is a book for anyone drawn to the magic of the North, and by the characters who inhabit that epic terrain.

Charles Wilkins wrestled Don Starkell's mountainous diary into the classic work of adventure travel Paddle to the Amazon, praised by The New York Times Book Review as "a model expeditionary journal." The winner of three National Magazine Awards, two American Magazine Association awards and The Gregory Clark Outdoor Writing Award, he has also been a finalist for the Writers' Trust Non-Fiction Prize, the Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour, the Trillium Book Prize and the Toronto Book Award. His acclaimed non-fiction includes In the Land of Long Fingernails, The Circus at the Edge of the Earth and Walk To New York, and he is the co-author with Gordie Howe of the bestseller After the Applause. He divides his time between Thunder Bay and Muskoka, Ontario.

Charles Wilkins' profile page

...the perfect book to read while waiting to have your teeth fixed, in the doctor's office, or in the car while your mate goes shopping...

Sun-Times, The

Certainly northern Ontario and Muskoka are subjects with incredible appeal. Wilkins' High on the Big Stone Heart is a good read for anyone drawn to the stunning terrain, storied history and rich culture of these areas.

Muskoka Magazine