The Forgotten Book Series
January 10th, 2025
A young boy's adventures on the range
June 1965. To nine-year-old Keith Huscroft, the school days seemed endless. This summer was going to be the most exciting ever! In a few days, he would be joining his father Bill, Uncle Bob, Uncle Waddie, and their sons on the annual cattle drive with his very own horse. Everyone was working long hours on their respective ranches in Lister, B.C., taking advantage of the extended days the wide Creston valley provided to prepare the cattle for the two-day trek.
For the past fifteen years, the three Huscroft brothers had shared about 120 cow-calf units on the Boundary Lake summer range located between Boundary Lake and Priest Lake. The range was about fifteen km. due south of the not yet constructed Salmo-Creston Summit on Hwy. #3.
Getting out of bed extra early on the designated Saturday morning was easy for young Keith. The operation required about 20 people – eight on horseback – and three pick-up trucks to haul supplies and gather up any late-born calves that found the steep climb up the mountain road too much for their young legs.
Adventure, or misadventure, started for Keith and his cousins when the cattle from all three ranches merged and headed for Rykerts and the Canada Customs at the U.S. border. Filing of endless paper, brand checking, border security, and clearance for all involved were still decades in the future; all that was expected from the drivers was a friendly nod to the customs official.
What a sight for the curious on-looker with Rykerts flooded by a river of noisy cattle; the sound of more than 500 hooves solidly hitting the hard-packed dirt street; hooves sucking through the mud on damp lawns and gardens, and the dust hanging over the town long after the swishing tail of the last cow was seen heading for the ferry!
The first major challenge was herding the cattle onto the cable-steered paddle-driven ferry at Porthill, the safest and easiest crossing of the wide Kootenay River. Their route had been westbound across the valley just a few hundred feet south of the border. After three to four ferry crossings and a brief rest, the route took them back into Canada, connecting with a narrow old logging road along Boundary Creek to Boundary Lake. The road followed the contours of Rykerts and Huscroft (named after Dennis Huscroft, who lost his life in WW II) mountains.
This leg of the journey took careful handling of the cattle, horses, and pick-up trucks. A careless animal or driver’s misstep could be fatal – sending them 250 feet down to the creek below. By now, the excitement was diminishing, replaced by hunger and tired muscles.
The first night was spent at Ernie Shunter’s, a long-time prospector up Boundary Creek. Ernie had, over the years, added a few cabins for sleeping near his quarters and cookhouse. Sometimes Ernie himself would show off his culinary skills by cooking mountains of flapjacks on his old wood stove for his 20 hungry guests before daybreak the following morning.
An early start and long day would see one and all to Boundary Lake, with the cowboys on horseback herding the cattle toward Priest Lake. A couple of the older boys would spend most of the summer keeping the cattle in the high pasture, well away from Boundary Lake and the rustic Forest Service campground.
Not all the cows preferred the peaceful high country. A few followed their tracks down the mountain to the west side of the Kootenay River and waited for the obliging ferry operator to come and get them. Over the years, he made more than a few phone calls to one of the Huscroft brothers to come to get their property. One time more than a dozen braved the Kootenay River, and the surprised customs official found Huscroft cattle contentedly bedded on his lawn.
Over the years, many laughs, memories, and adventures were experienced, such as the time a glass gallon jar of sourdough pancake batter protested the heat and rough road by exploding all over the inside of Uncle Bob’s pick-up! Luckily, all made it through the cattle drives safely, one time overloading the ferry to the extent that over a foot of water was flowing over the ferry deck as they crossed the Kootenay River.
Eventually, after the ferry at Porthill was removed in 1970, the noisy multi-wheeled cattle haulers were used to haul the cattle up Highway #3 over the new Salmo-Creston pass to their summer range. The border towns of Rykerts and Porthill progressed to paperwork, inspections, and computers. The boyhood adventures were over, but Keith’s memories still happily remain.
Eventually, after the ferry at Porthill was removed in 1970, the noisy multi-wheeled cattle haulers were used to haul the cattle up Highway #3 over the new Salmo-Creston pass to their summer range.
The border towns of Rykerts and Porthill progressed to paperwork, inspections, and computers. The boyhood adventures were over, but Keith’s memories still happily remain.
