(00:06:25) You say in your paper there, what are the things you liked most (about being part of the Warden Service), well there are so many things that you can think of. Yep (agrees with what other participants have said, it was more a way of life not just a job).
(00:06:47) (Showing another picture) – This is up in Georgian Bay Islands. This is on Beausoleil Island, which is an isolated island. We had 27 little camp sites along the shoreline. (Beausoleil) means beautiful sunset in French. We had a crew of about 30 men in the summer and they would maintain these sites. They would go around with a barge that I designed with a landing ramp. They’d just pull up and let the ramp down. They could haul wood on into the site and bring garbage off. So they’d go around to all the sites in the summer and look after them.
(00:07:50) (Showing another picture) – That’s me learning how to climb a pole.
(00:08:07) (Showing another picture from Cuthead College) Ted Christianson, Gerry Lister, Gerry Campbell and Hugh Jennings.
(00:08:31) Gosh, I was looking at some albums I have today…I haven’t looked at them for years and years.
(00:09:24) (Gerry was born) Erskine Alberta, Canada. 1929. July 25th. It’s west of Stettler, not too far from Edmonton. Up in that country. We had a homestead up in the Peace River Country in the early days. My dad got TB when we were up in the homestead. They finally brought him down to Edmonton and he died. He was 27. He was quite young. I was five. Yeah, a sister, a year younger.
(00:10:30) (Showing a picture) – That’s me in a canoe out here (in Penticton), years and years ago. Oh gosh! That was in the ‘40’s. Lots of times when I was working around the country, riding usually. I’d drop in here and spend a few days. Yeah, my folks moved here from Calgary. My mother married again.
(00:11:05) I had a horse in Calgary. A number of us young fellows on the North Hill, we used to spend all our time with horses. So I saddled up my horse and put a bedroll on behind. I had a job with Brewster’s in Banff as a guide. So I rode up there from Calgary. Oh, (Gerry was) about 17 when I went up. I turned 18 when I was up there in July.
(00:11:49) No, (it wasn’t his first job). I worked for a riding school on the west end of Calgary the first year. Sunset Riding Academy. Well (I did) pretty well everything, I herded horses during the day out on the road allowances. We had about 50 horses. Then I’d bring them in the afternoon, chase them loose. Get them in the corral and in the barn. Saddle them all and get them ready for a trail ride that night. We had trail rides out every night…Yeah the next summer (Gerry went to Brewster’s in Banff).
(00:12:53) It took me two days to ride up to Banff. On the way up I was crossing the Morley Reserve, off to the side of the highway on a little bit of a cliff. (My horse’s) legs kind of sunk out of sight and she fell down and I fell off. And she was a crazy horse. So she immediately got up and the first thing she could think of to do is run. So she started running. She ran across the road just as the bus came along. She went smack into the side of the bus and bounced back into the ditch. Then she started heading back for Calgary. Just slowly walking. Just enough to stay ahead of me. And here I am following along and my sleeping bag and everything I own is tied to the saddle. Finally, an Indian came out of the bush on horseback. He said, “Do you want me to catch your horse?” I said, “Oh I would love you to.” He knew there was a cross fence up ahead that we were heading for. So he just put the horse in the corner and went and caught her. So I got back on and went up to Banff. Crazy thing…Anyhow, she had run with the chuck wagons and she went kind of crazy from that.
He was the best Chief Warden I worked for. a great man!