Randy Nelson’s The Wildest Hunt: True Stories of Game Wardens and Poachers

Book Review

This new book was written by retired BC fishery officer Randy Nelson. Be prepared to read some of the wildest true crime imaginable! Randy gathered the wildest, craziest, funniest, and most bizarre poaching stories by contacting hundreds of fish and wildlife officers from all over North America. You’ll find details the public has never heard. The book has at least one story from every province and territory in Canada, and every state in the US. If you’d like to read an interview with Randy by the Vancouver Sun, click here.

The Wildest Hunt: True Stories of Game Wardens and Poachers. Click to Amazon for Kindle or or Paperback

Nelson’s entertaining stories also shed light on the important work of fish and wildlife officers including the dangers they face each day and the important role the public plays in solving wildlife crime.

Author: Retired BC fishery Officer Randy Nelson

About Poaching and the Goal of the Book

Nelson’s goal with the book is to get people thinking about poaching that happens in their back yard, and how important it can be to help. He is also donating proceeds from the book to The Game Warden Museum, dedicated to officers killed in the line of duty. Geographically, it’s the center of North America and represents Canada and the US.

Remembering the fallen. Photo Game Warden Museum

This is not just about someone shooting a deer. Some poachers make millions of dollars, and many are organized criminals. Some are too funny to make up; a duck hunter who was busted by his own dog, a young lady who was busted on a dating web site, or a beluga whale seized in Saskatchewan.

Reader Quotes

• • “Poachers beware! Randy Nelson takes us on a storyteller’s rollercoaster ride, up, down and around the often times humorous, sometimes sad, but always poignant tales from the poacher’s underworld.” – Jim Shockey, producer and host of Uncharted
  • “Wide-ranging and entertaining … insight into a world very few of us see, that of illegal wildlife takings and the heroic efforts of enforcement officers.” – Shane Mahoney, President and CEO of Conservation Visions
  • “Required reading for all conservationists and hunters.” – Chuck Zuckerman, President BC Wildlife Federation (BCWF)

1st Book: Poachers, Polluters & Politics

Click to Kindle or Paperback

Randy’s first book, Poachers, Polluters and Politics, chronicles his 35-year career as a fishery officer in BC. Randy was also an elite marathon runner and used that skill to literally run down and catch hundreds of salmon poachers throughout his career. Randy was always scheming up new ways to catch the poachers. He was innovative and fair, and usually earned the respect of communities and fishers he encountered.

This entertaining book also details how he worked with other officers to improve relationships with user groups, especially First Nations. Through his leadership, restorative justice was used for fisheries offences for the first time anywhere in the world. He also initiated fishery officer’s involvement in canoe journeys with First Nations throughout BC.

Highly Decorated DFO Officer

He had more than his share of serious incidents including being hit by a truck, had his shoulder broken with an oar, was attacked by a grizzly bear, was stabbed in the chest, was hit by rocks, and a host of other threats. He retired as the most decorated (and lucky) fishery officer in DFO. He lives in Kamloops with his wife Lorraine. If you want a signed copy, you can contact Randy at [email protected].

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