The
Mountain
Knows
No
Expert
The
Mountain
Knows
No
Expert
GEORGE EVANOFF
Outdoorsman and Contemporary Hero
Mike Nash
Copyright © Mike Nash, 2009
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise (except for brief passages for purposes of review) without the prior permission of Dundurn Press. Permission to photocopy should be requested from Access Copyright.
Edited by Jane Gibson
Copy-edited by Caley Baker
Proofread by Allison Hirst
Designed by Courtney Horner
Printed and bound in Canada by Webcom
Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication
Nash, Mike, 1946-
The mountain knows no expert : George Evanoff, outdoorsman and contemporary hero / by Mike Nash.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-55002-868-3
1. Evanoff, George, 1932-1998. 2. Outdoor life--Rocky Mountains, Canadian (B.C. and Alta.). 3. Mountaineers--Rocky Mountains, Canadian (B.C. and Alta.)--Biography. 4. Skiers--British Columbia--Biography. 5. Outdoor recreation industry--British Columbia--Biography. 6. Rocky Mountains, Canadian (B.C. and Alta.)--Biography. 7. Prince George Region (B.C.)--Biography. I. Title.
FC218.E93N38 2008 971.1’04092 C2008-904984-5
1 2 3 4 5 13 12 11 10 09
We acknowledge the support of The Canada Council for the Arts and the Ontario Arts Council for our publishing program. We also acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Book Publishing Industry Development Program and The Association for the Export of Canadian Books, and the Government of Ontario through the Ontario Book Publishers Tax Credit program, and the Ontario Media Development Corporation.
Care has been taken to trace the ownership of copyright material used in this book. The author and the publisher welcome any information enabling them to rectify any references or credits in subsequent editions.
J. Kirk Howard, President
Published by Natural Heritage Books
A Member of The Dundurn Group
Cover photo: George Evanoff on the summit of unofficially named Guardian Mountain above the future location of his backcountry ski lodge in the Dezaiko Range of the Rocky Mountains between the McGregor River and Herrick Creek, August 1981. Photo courtesy of the author.
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Contents
Chapter 2 | Early Years and Rural Alberta, 1932–45
Chapter 3 | A Young Man Blossoms
Chapter 4 | Settling in British Columbia
Chapter 6 | Dall Rams the Hard Way
Chapter 9 | Backcountry Beckons
Chapter 11 | North Rockies Ski Tours
Chapter 12 | Land and Resource Planning
Chapter 13 | Fight with Cancer
Epilogue: Legacy of a North Rockies Man
Appendix II: Backcountry Affiliations
Appendix III: Land and Resource Planning in British Columbia