As I dozed, I was still aware of a grey, rocky landscape through which the bus was tortuously proceeding, twisting and turning, up and down the mountain road. This was mining country, and at regular intervals I caught glimpses of white, concrete stake posts, indicating, I supposed, the limits of the land claims by competing prospecting companies. I saw plenty of mines, but virtually no vegetation …
Bio:
Ian Birch taught business and finance at universities in British Columbia and Ontario before retiring onto a wooded acreage in the Township of Leeds and the Thousand Islands to pursue diverse projects. This article is an excerpt from the author’s book The Last Train through the Heart of the Americas: By Rail and Road across Two Hemispheres for which he is currently seeking an agent/publisher (ianbbirch@hotmail.com).