THE CORDILLERA EXPEDITION!
A JOURNEY YOU WILL NEVER FORGET!
The Amazing CORDILLERA! Expedition. A North American classic and a national best seller. A truly great adventure of our time.
Three men set out from the northern plains of North America with pack and saddle horses in an attempt to reach the Pacific Ocean. Twelve hundred wilderness miles, eleven mountain ranges, and twenty two river crossings later, only one of them reached Wrangell, Alaska.
This is the fascinating account of the incredible journey. It was one of the longest, most rugged wilderness journeys ever – A truly great adventure of our time – A truly great book!
NOTE: This is the latest edition. Re-edited by the author. Added writing. More images - 97 color and black and white images. The latest and the best.
Glossy Laminate Softcover, 5.5x8.5 inches, 360 Pages, 100 Color and B&W Images
$10 CAD flat rate shipping anywhere in Canada!
eBooks are provided in PDF format. Kindle and Kobo coming soon.
Cordillera - Book Preview
By mid-evening we knew that the energy and fortitude that we had drawn from for so many days could no longer supply our demands, no matter how frequent the rests; no matter how much cold water we drank and no matter how often we maddened ourselves for shots of adrenalin.
Our faces were permanent contortions of stress and filth. Again and again we were checkmate against immovable castles: searching for a way through, reading a difficult path, cutting through, leap-frogging to moss islands amidst open water, sinkholes and heaved root pits. Over and over we stumbled and fell, stumbled and leaped, leaped from the horses jumping on our heels and backsides.
And now, in the graveyard twilight of the tombstone-ridden forest, even the horses stumbled under the packs, with no hope of a fresh assault on solid ground. A tiny hummocky patch of solid ground came and we rested for a moment. Then no solid ground at all, nothing suitable for resting, but there was no choice. The horses stood at odd angles, legs in and out of branches, sinkholes, dead water, moss and bent willow.
There were no birds with pretty voices, no sunshine, only shadow below canopies of boughs and mountains. Worst of all, no hope for improvement. It was the closest place on the natural earth I had ever known, or would ever know, to hell. Finally, we dropped to the ground as contorted slinkies, bent and hopeless. The simple movement of a leg was too great an effort......
Reviews
I have read this book several times. Its amazing, really entertaining and I learned a lot. It’s a good insight on guts, fortitude, stick-to-it-ness. Everything from laughs to adrenaline rushes with river crossings and tough circumstances. Really like the look at the remote Indian villages.
Don Hill, Ardrossan, Alberta
This documentary is outstanding. You can really see the connection between rider and the wilderness, how Stan Walchuk becomes one with the wilderness. Its about his inner abilities and skills. You don’t complete an incredible journey like this without that connection.
Bob Silverthorne, Educator, High Country Guides School
“Walchuk completed an unbelievable journey last summer. On horseback, completing the journey alone, this young man spent over 100 days travelling from Fort St John, BC, to the pacific ocean. It was over 850 miles and marked by high adventure and imminent danger . . . . first wilderness journey from the plains to the Pacific since the fur trade, about 170 years . . . . greatest wilderness horse packtrip ever. . . . the horror of catastrophe, the hardship, the joy, the way of bush people and the pulse of the land . . ."
The Wetaskiwin Times
“Facing his own mortality many times over he still loves and appreciates the great outdoors. I envisioned Stan telling this story around a campfire as I read. He had me on the edge of my seat. What a fascinating life!”
Mette Felmark, Salmon Arm, B
“It was a vision on the scale of MacKenzie’s. And nothing like it had had a chance of Success since Lewis and Clark. Eleven mountain ranges, 22 river crossings, 12 remote mountain passes; the journey encompassed over 1600 km of wilderness travel. It was no wonder most reckoned the route impossible.”
Explore Magazine
“Just finished your book. It brought me hours and hours of pleasant reading. Writing a good book makes for so many enjoyable hours of reading for so many. Thank you for that!"
Dale Kluivers, Quesnel, BC
“Stan Walchuk had a vision that carried him over the wilderness of Northern British Columbia, a trek that few have ever made on horseback . . . . to cross 11 mountain ranges, a 1,700 km journey from the plains to the Pacific . . . . Though stalked by death daily neither man nor beast gave up his quest . . . . MacDonald and Wolfe, however, gave up at Fort Ware. It was the first leg of the trip, a mere 390 kilometers. It was supposed to take just 15 days, but it had lasted a month. . . . Having accepted death as a travelling companion, Walchuk has strong feelings. . . . ."
Terry Craig, Calgary Herald.
“Mr. Walchuk’s film had been ruined by water, he had lost his coat, down to a single change of clothing, and lost his chaps (all lost to the rivers). His companions had lost heart. The numerous unavoidable river crossings had done all of the damage, endangering their lives constantly. . . . decided to plunge on alone.”
Stephen Weatherbe, The Alberta Report
“They found entire forests blackened by fires, murky rivers that suddenly dropped off to nothing under their feet, thickets that tore the clothes off their backs and deep, sucking bogs that pulled horses down, making every step a struggle . . . .”
Mark Hume, Edmonton Journal
“Hi, I have two of your books, Cordillera! And the Common Man book. Let me tell you I read a lot of this type of book and these two are the best I have read. I have lent them to other’s and they say the same thing. Let me know if Stan Walchuk Jr. has any more books out."
John Ward, Chisolm Alberta