A BC classic—over 100,000 copies in print!

Joe Garner's father, Oland, was the oldest of four brothers who were run out of South Carolina in 1903 by the Ku Klux Klan. Along with his bride, Lona, Oland headed west to San Francisco, then north to Victoria, BC. He found employment with Emily Carr's father. Ten years later he helped Emily build her house in Victoria. Garner recalls a hilarious childhood night spent sleeping between the artist's two shaggy sheepdogs.

In this fascinating memoir, Joe Garner takes us from the family's move to Salt Spring Island to his adventures as a hunter and trapper to his adult exploits as an entrepreneur and innovator in several of the west coast's burgeoning industries. Garner recalls encounters with a cougar, journeys by floatplane to the remote reaches of the Queen Charlotte Islands and the lakes of the Chilcotin, and a poker game in which the stakes included logging camps and aircraft.

Joe Garner was born on Saltspring Island, BC, in 1909. In his nine decades he was a pioneer in various aspects of BC’s logging, construction and transportation industries. Joe was the author of five never-dull books about life’s experiences. Joe became legendary as a self-promoter, selling his books province-wide for almost 20 years.

Joe Garner's profile page