What the visitors to this site have to say

Submitted on 2012/05/09 at 9:36 am

I live in Christchuch New Zealand ( of earthquake fame) I have just read Three against the Wilderness for the first time and really loved it. I got it from our local library and will be recommending it to others. What stoic individuals they were, so self sufficient and brave. I think it would be a great compulsory read for high schools such thought provoking material with just a bit of how three people could change their world for the better.
Lynne Reyn

Submitted on 2012/05/04 at 3:04 pm

I just finished rereading this book for the third time. I think my first introduction to the Collier family was 45 years ago, long before the Internet. When I closed the book today, I wondered if I would find any mention of Veasy if I did a computer search, and to my delight, look what I found! Apparently, the story of his family has endured and the lessons learned continue to this day. I am so happy that people keep discovering Eric Collier’s timeless tale of wilderness life.
Ann Penny

Submitted on 2012/04/19 at 8:25 pm
I have almost completed Three Against the Wilderness and it is one of the best books I have ever read. I can’t wait to see what happens next and am absolutely amazed at this young family’s inner strength and perseverance. I have my Bachelor of Education and this book should be taught as a novel study in High School English. It also should be made into a movie. I have several people waiting to borrow my book once I have completed it.
Jayne Mann

Submitted on 2012/03/31 at 5:25 pm

Hello! I am from Russia and I really like the book and the story about Collier family. In Russian region where I come from there was an interesting story like Colliers business. It was business about saving beavers and it was in 1920. Group of scientists established a laboratory where they increased population of beavers and saved them from disappearance. This laboratory still works now. I have question to builders of this site. Do you have interviews of Veasy Collier in text format? I am not very good in listening English speech and do not understand some of Veasy Collier sentences but it is so interesting information. I have read this book several times. Thanks a lot for your job. This site is really interesting. There are many people in Russia who loved story of Collier family. And it is an interesting moment that in approximately same time (1920-1930) the same thought to save beavers came to persons in so far situated countries like Canada and Russia. The Colliers made a great deal for all people.
Alex

Submitted on 2011/12/12 at 7:55 pm
I am reading the book now and enjoying it very much. Eric Collier lived the dream that I had when I was young. I was inspired then by the stories of Jack London, and other wilderness tales. I had romantic ideas about getting away from the artificial life of a typical urban dweller and getting as close as possible to the basics of life, the struggle for existence against a tough natural world that could snuff you out if you didn’t learn its rules and learn them quickly, but which could in its gentler moments show you the most beautiful things. There isn’t room for everyone to live that way these days, even if they wanted too, but those that had the vision and determination to see it through can still inspire the rest of us. Long live nature.
Dennis Edwards

Submitted on 2011/07/21 at 4:48 am
If you stay at the Chilcotin Lodge in Riske Creek it’s not far from there to get to the cabins. Visit http://www.chilcotinlodge.com
Tegan Heard

Submitted on 2011/06/18 at 12:05 am
I thought it was a great book, beautifully written, every chapter an arduous or exciting adventure written with sensitivity and love of the environment in which he and Lilly lived. It was also a love story, a partnership between two people who were both passionately involved, in the B.C. wilderness. Their successful struggle together is an inspiration.
As an aside, I have recently discovered that Lilly was a first cousin once removed from her ancestral family in Cape Breton Island, N.S. as am I. From sea to sea.
Bev Guy

Submitted on 2011/05/07 at 9:38 pm
Hello! During 1960 & 1961 I lived in Williams Lake and at that time worked for the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce. I also purchased “Three Against the Wilderness”. I had this book for a number of years,but, a friend (?) didn’t return it so I wanted to read it again and bought it once more recently. Still a great story!! I did not remember that the Beavers came from Bowron Lake Park. Since my first trip to “Bowron” in 1963 I have gone around that circuit 13 times, the last being in 2008. Another interesting note is that when I left Williams Lake with a buddy we went to Eastern Canada and Europe for almost a year. I had a 1957 Monarch Richelieu which I traded for a 1960 V-W reported to be owned by “Veasy Collier”. That car traveled right to Halifax and back. I traded it in for a new car purchased in Chilliwack. Maybe it’s still zipping around the Fraser Valley, although I painted it a bright yellow. Maybe on thinking back a little too bright for the time! I am next month approaching year number 73 so we are of almost the same vintage. I enjoyed the web sites.
Keith Gilmour

Submitted on 2011/04/12 at 10:48 pm
I just finished “Three Against the Wilderness” – a book that I should have read many years ago. It was a wonderful reading experience, and I now wish that I had used this as when I was teaching novel study in High School English.
Tony Guy

Submitted on 2011/04/06 at 6:28 pm
Some of us cannot live without wilderness. Embellished or not, Collier’s stories as told in his book are an inspiration and a much-needed hope for some of us. I am absolutely horrified by what oil and uranium corporations are doing to the last large pristine wilderness areas in Canada. Collier’s book should never be forgotten.
A great site. Many thanks to James Stewart.
Kaz Dziamka

Submitted on 2011/03/27 at 11:27 am
My wife and I are planning a trip from Australia to Canada. My sister loaned me Eric’s book. She’s had it for years and has read it many times.
What a great ‘yarn’! I liked Eric’s turn of phrase, so often! The interviews with Veasy are fascinating.
We have wondered if we could plan to visit Meldrum Creek – but it seems that it would be a 7+ hour trip from Vancouver – and then what? At the very least, I hope we can see real beaver dams somewhere in BC when we visit!
Ken

Submitted on 2011/03/11 at 10:58 pm
I remember my mother reading the Readers Digest condensation of “Three Against the Wilderness” in 1959 to me when I was nine and to two boys who lived up the road. I’ve read the book numerous times and continue to enjoy it – and have in recent years given or loaned a copy to several out doorsmen, friends of mine. Please know that they too have enjoyed it. Please cherish the knowledge that the story is still respected and appreciated.
James V. Delk, Whitwell, TN 37397

Submitted on 2011/02/14 at 4:59 am
My husband and I have enjoyed camping and fishing at Raven Lake near Riske Creek and this is the reason I recently purchased this book from Walmart in Victoria. Liked hearing Veasy’s honest accounts that he remembers from this time in his life. Also nice to know what happened to him. Really enjoyed the book it’s a great story.
Lissa Hunter

Submitted on 2011/01/16 at 10:38 pm
What an amazing family! I’ve read Three Against The Wilderness twice.It’s a keeper!! Makes me wish I had been there! Another wonderful book is Crusoe of Lonesome Lake by Leland Stowe, a true story of Ralph Edwards and his family, very much the same as Eric Collier and his family.
Tracy McClure-Jacober

Submitted on 2010/09/27 at 8:46 pm
I was bequeathed a batch of old books and yours was one of them , which I have read with the most enjoyment. I live in Northern Ireland with a family of five daughters and one son all gone now to have their own lives, I am still working as a librarian, (not boring very active in fact I am just about to finish my Masters in Library management and hope to graduate next May in Egyptology). This book has made such an impact on my life. The fact that people can live in isolation and live life to the full is just so amazing. I just loved the whole story of Eric, Lilian and Veasy and my grandsons are looking forward to reading your lives.
Mary E Regan

Submitted on 2010/08/01 at 8:27 am
My wife and I have been reading Three Against the Willderness for the past 40 odd years and never tire of reliving the achievement of these people.To be able to view your interview with Veasy has just added another dimension to this saga. Thank you for making this for all who are interested in the achievements of humanity.
Graeme Pearse

Submitted on 2010/05/17 at 4:35 am
Gordon Smilie is our neighbour, good to know we could view the traps at his place. We just returned from the Collier homestead, what a place! We saw a beautiful black bear both coming and going on our ATV’s. Our book club will discuss the book tomorrow night, very interesting to listen to your interview with Veasy. Thank-you.
Val Biffert

Submitted on 2010/04/24 at 6:54 am

Last year I managed to get up to the head waters of Meldrum creek to one of the dams that they had rebuilt (the boulders incorporated into the dam were too big for a beaver to have moved there) but couldn’t get any further in our car. I only found ancient trace of beaver activity and none new. Do you by any chance know if the beaver in the area are being hunted again. Perhaps for castor of for their furs for China.
William Hughes-Games