Diary of a Wilderness Dweller [Paperback]

Chris Czajkowski (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2006

CHRIS CZAJKOWSKI left her truck at the end of a logging road 190 miles north of Vancouver and hiked for two days into wilderness to the site of what would become her home. She built three log cabins, an ecotourism business, and a life by an unnamed lake high in the Coast Range mountains. This edition of DIARY OF A WILDERNESS DWELLER shares her adventures as she wields chainsaw and axe to forge a new life.

Editorial Reviews

Review

The Globe and Mail : "Czajkowski has nurtured and developed a connection to the earth that most of us can hardly relate to, let alone appreciate ... [She] has followed a different path, reminding us of how much we don't need, and how much we are missing."
--The Globe & Mail


Vancouver Sun : "As western society becomes increasingly reliant on technology and marches further from its roots, Czajkowski's books allow us to share a rare, lingering glimpse of frontier life."
--Vancouver Sun

bcbooks.com : "Chris transports the reader into the trackless expanse that is her neighbourhood, opening a truly experiential window into the world of those who live alone, far from the concrete canyons that many of us call home."
--bcbooks.com

About the Author

Chris Czajkowski was born and raised in the north of England. She lived and worked in Uganda, New Zealand, the South Pacific and South America before settling in the remote reaches of British Columbia's Coast Range mountains, 480 kilometres north of Vancouver, where she operates the Nuk Tessli Alpine Experience. Her wilderness and cabin-building experiences have been documented in several bestselling books, including Cabin at Singing River, Snowshoes and Spotted Dick: Letters from a Wilderness Dweller and Nuk Tessli: Life of a Wilderness Dweller.

Product Details

• Paperback: 207 pages
• Publisher: Harbour Pub Co; 1 edition (May 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 155017357X
• ISBN-13: 978-1550173574
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #280,222 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An inspiring, warm story by a modern day pioneer!, August 18, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Cody, WY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Diary of a Wilderness Dweller (Paperback)

If you have ever dreampt of walking away from the frantic pace of modern day living, you must read the story of Chris Czajkowski (pronounced Tchaikovsky). My wife and I had the priveledge of spending three glorious and unforgetable days with Chris in the cabin featured in this story. Three years might have been enough to begin absorbing the depth of this womans wilderness challenges. You must read this book!!!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating wilderness diary, November 28, 2005

By 

C. Hill (Oregon, U.S.) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Diary of a Wilderness Dweller (Paperback)

In Chris Czajkowski's first book, Cabin at Singing River, she wrote about building a cabin and living the wilderness life in British Columbia. In this book, she moves away from her first cabin in southern Tweedsmuir Park and sets up camp on the shores of a high-elevation lake, about a day's walk east from her old location.

This book is written in the form of a diary, covering the period from June 1988 to July 1990. She writes about the mounds of paperwork and red tape she must get through since she is living on Crown Land. She also writes about the difficulties of building the two cabins that will be the base for her new "Nuk Tessli Apline Experience" business, finding the best route out to the road, run-ins with bears, violent storms, the complexities of getting supplies flown in, and the beauty and peace of her wilderness life.

My one complaint about this book is the lack of a good map. There is a large-scale map showing SW British Columbia, but I would have appreciated a more detailed map of her immediate area, especially when she talks about her explorations of the many surrounding lakes and mountains. More than once I trekked down to the library to take a look at the topographical map of that area.

As with the first book, this one is a fascinating tale of life in British Columbia's Coast Mountains. Even if such a lifestyle holds no appeal for you, you have to admire Chris for her tenacity and courage. She tells a great story here.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a woman!, January 1, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Diary of a Wilderness Dweller (Paperback)

This woman has done things I have always dreamed of doing - building my own log cabin out in the wilderness. Her descriptions of her life during that time is wonderful and I just wish I could have been there too - to help her and learn from her. I loved the book.