Cataline

"Long before there were railways, supertankers or jumbo jets to enmesh British Columbia in world commerce, freight moved on men's backs, by mule train, by tooth-rattling buckboard and eventually by a technological wonder—the stage coach.  Furs and gold may dominate BC's modern creation narrative, but it was the pack train that made it possible.  It carried supplies and trade goods to the mines and trapping out posts and back-hauled bullion and furs to market.

Among the most colourful of these tough, resourceful characters was a packer named Jean Caux.  Nicknamed Cataline by his gold rush clients, his story is the story of how the province invented itself.  It's a tale of First Nations in collision with globalization, of dashing adventurers and cruel outlaws, ruthless entrepreneurs and startling visionaries.  Cataline: The Life of BC's Legendary Packer is a remarkable window into that astonishing period of the province's history, and what a story it is! —Stephen Hume, Vancouver Sun columnist and award-winning author

This is a well-researched book on a fascinating character in early British Columbia.  Set in the context of a time when the frontier was being pushed ever northward in BC, it will make an excellent addition to the historical record of the province.  Cataline was one of the true characters whose story enlivens the history of our province. —Ken Mather, Historian and author of six books on BC History

A very readable and lively account of the life and work of Jean (Cataline) Caux. —Andrea Laforet, retied director of Ethnology and Cultural Studies at the Canadian Museum of History, and co-author with Annie York of Spuzzum: Fraser Canyon Histories, 1808-1939"