Reading the West Coast: Women with Wanderlust
Annotation:After her husband died in 1927, leaving her with five small children, everyone expected the struggles of single motherhood on a remote island to overcome M. Wylie Blanchet. Instead, this courageous woman became one of the pioneers of "family travel," acting as both mother and captain of the twenty-five-foot boat that became her family's home during the long Northwest summers. Blanchet's lyrically written account reads like fantastic fiction, but her adventures are all very real.
Place a Hold
Annotation:One of Canada's most renowned artists, Emily Carr (1872-1945) painted her country's native people and the magnificent totem poles they built before civilization completely changed their way of life. To do so, she traveled the rugged coastal islands of British Columbia. Sometimes she explored abandoned villages; other times she found warm hospitality in so-called hostile villages.
Annotation:Frances Barkley was just seventeen when she became the first European woman to set foot on the shores of the Pacific Northwest. After a sheltered upbringing in England, Frances found herself boarding the Imperial Eagle in 1786 to set sail on an adventurous, round-the-world voyage with her husband, Captain Charles William Barkley. "The Remarkable World of Frances Barkley" is a brilliant tribute that brings the intrepid young bride and her world to life for a new generation of readers.
Annotation:This book of love, marriage, fishing, and the sea reflects the author's profound respect and affection for her husband. "Fishing with John" chronicles the unusual marriage of Iglauer, a New York urbanite to Daly, a commercial salmon fisherman from British Columbia.
Annotation:Chronicles the stories of 110 women mariners who work on a variety of vessels—tugboats, charter yachts, fishboats, ice breakers, water taxis, ferries and deep sea freighters.The stories these women tell are gripping, dramatic, courageous, salty and often humorous.
Annotation:Betty Lowman Carey's inspired account of her solo journey by canoe to Alaska and through some of the most treacherous waters of the Inside Passage, at a time when much of area was wild and inaccessible. She travels with minimal supplies, almost no money, and often without charts, and she exults in being alone with the wild coastline, up close and at her own pace.
Annotation:Brimming with breathtaking colour photographs and compelling journal entries from all stages of their exciting kayaking journey, "Visions of the Wild" is at once an inspiring chronicle of the adventure of a lifetime, and a beautiful book of photographs that rejoices in the untamed spirit of Canada's west coast.
Annotation:“Frayne is very much an original, with a bracing, vibrant style fresh as a gust of northern wind. Her memoir of a mid-life trek into deep wilderness is less travelogue than soul-revealing confession, a cri du coeur riddled with the complex, pulsing veins of relationship -- not just with other people, but with that great and glorious enigma, the land…. Frayne writes early on that the initial idea for her journey was inspired by a Peter Gzowski interview on Morningside. How he would have loved this fresh, windy, woodsmoky piece of poetry, so full of passion and vulnerability.” --The Gazette (Montreal)
Annotation:Exploring, laughing, beachcombing, fishing, basking in sunshine or waiting for a break in the weather, Mary Gazetas has paddled the west coast for almost 30 summers, recording her adventures in journals, photographs, and drawings.
Annotation:In a kayak named Yemaya with a cedar wreath lashed to the stern, Jennifer Hahn launched from Ketchikan, Alaska, on a 750 mile solo voyage home to Bellingham. Hahn's journey is not about miles but moments; about sinking into the rhythm of waves and tide; about the deep connection Hahn made with the wildlife and seascape around her; and about the people she met along the way--lonely lighthouse keepers, salmon fishers, native elders, and small-time loggers. Sensual in its vision, Spirit Waters reminds us that even in the landscape of solitude, we are never alone.
Annotation:Maria Coffey and Dag Goering embark on a three-month journey by wooden boat along Canada's spectacular west coast. Leading the way are legendary boat builders and sailors Allen and Sharie Farrell on their last voyage aboard the China Cloud. Powered only by wind and sculling oars, they take Coffey and Goering to their old haunts, places where they homesteaded, fished, and built boats. Years roll away as the Farrells recount decades of memories with passion, insight and humour.
Annotation:Margaret Horsfield won the Roderick Haig-Brown Prize at the 2000 BC Book Awards for "Cougar Annie's Garden". This prize is awarded annually to the book contributing most to the understanding and appreciation of British Columbia. Now in its third printing, "Cougar Annie's Garden" continues to cast its spell. The writing and the photography in this full-colour book are of the highest quality. The book appeals to a wide audience, including gardeners, local history buffs, and anyone interested in the West Coast and its tall tales. The book has become a classic of coastal history.
Annotation:Using narratives of Northwest Coast marine tourists between 1861 and 1990, Nancy Pagh, Canadian Studies professor, examines the ways that gender influences the roles that women play at sea.
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Description
British Columbia's rugged and alluring coastline has inspired explorers, authors, artists, and travellers to write of their experiences. Inspired by the 50th anniversary of the legendary Pacific Coast travel narrative, "The Curve of Time" by M. Wylie Blanchet, we have pulled together a selection of coastal narratives by adventurous West Coast women.
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