When a concerned community dug two stranded, starving horses down from a snowbound mountain two winters ago, it touched the hearts of the nation. It also touched off the pen of Birgit Stutz, a horse professional and one of the ones working a shovel. Now she is telling the story in book form: The Rescue of Belle and Sundance - A Miracle on Mount Renshaw.
Belle and Sundance had been abandoned on Mount Renshaw near McBride. Their owner, a lawyer from Edmonton who fancied himself a backwoodsman, got into difficulty on a summer trek and cut the horses loose, then organized no recovery effort. He just left them.
In December, some snowmobilers came across the horses, nearly expired and impossibly trapped. Well, almost impossibly.
"Belle and Sundance were a sorry sight," Stutz wrote. "They were emaciated, shivering and trapped in a small shelter they had made for themselves by tramping down the six-foot-deep snow. Next morning, a party of four from the nearby town of McBride was sent back up the mountain with a bale of hay, a handgun and a heartbreaking choice to make: either feed the horses, or shoot them.
"The four agreed: there was an undeniable glimmer in the eyes of Belle and Sundance, and the decision was made to feed them. But saving the two horses would require a lot more than hay. Weighing their options, many people in McBride decided to pull on their long johns and pitch in - they would dig, by hand, the three-foot-wide, six-foot-deep, kilometre-long tunnel that became Belle and Sundance's route to freedom."
The book immortalizing the rescue is set for release on Tuesday. No Prince George date has been set for a public event, but one is expected soon since the northern capital played a big role in the rescue of Belle and Sundance. They were brought here to convalesce at Prince George Equine Rescue, the horse-recovery centre located on West Beaverly Road. Once recovered, one of the horses was adopted to a family in Kamloops and one still lives in Prince George.
Readings and signings with Stutz (her co-author is Ontario-based writer Lawrence Scanlon) will take place at:
- Valemount secondary school on Tuesday from noon to 1 p.m.
- McBride Trading Co. on Nov. 26 from 1 to 3 p.m. and from 6 to 8 p.m. during the Festival of Lights.
- The Gathering Tree in Valemount on Dec. 3 from 6 to 8 p.m. during late night shopping.
Copies of the book will be for sale at the McBride Trading Co., at the Farm Store in McBride, at the McBride Visitor Info Centre, at the Dunster Store, and at The Gathering Tree in Valemount, as well as at Bearfoot-in-the-Park in Jasper.
"People living outside the Robson Valley can order the book through Chapters or Amazon or inquire at their local bookstore," Stutz told The Citizen. "I will also have a few copies on hand if anybody would like to buy a signed copy. Please contact me directly for that."
Contact her at Falling Star Ranch: phone/fax 250-968-6801 or go to her website at www.fallingstarranch.ca.
