When I wanted to salvage a wrecked log cabin and bring it home, my husband thought I was off my rocker! Now it’s a charming addition to our acreage, and a perfect home for my favourite Canadiana collectables.

Golden-hued log cabin in Invermere, British Columbia has small front deck, one door, one window, a cow skull hanging on one wall and a set of moose antlers on the deck, nestled amidst green spruce trees.

Welcome to Letters From Windermere, where I write about:

HISTORY: mostly Western Canada history, plus any other subject that captures my interest.
WRITING: info about Finding Flora, my new historical homesteading novel.
BOOKS: I recommend a good book every month.

But First, My Book News

My historical novel Finding Flora is a runaway success. Since it was launched on the first day of April 2025, it debuted on the national bestseller list for Canadian Fiction in the number one spot. And it has now remained on the national bestseller list for six weeks in a row!

One of the things that catapulted sales of the book was an endorsement from Heather Reisman of Toronto, the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Indigo, Chapters, and Coles bookstores across Canada.

If she reads and likes your book, it becomes a “Heather’s Pick” and is prominently displayed in all her bookstores. She even sent me a personal message!

Here I am signing copies of my book on the Heather’s Picks table at an Indigo store in Vancouver, B.C.

We are currently at our cozy bungalow in Qualicum Beach on Vancouver Island, where I am preparing for my combination garden party and book signing on Friday, May 23. Everyone is welcome, so if you are in the neighbourhood, please drop in — and don’t forget to wear a hat!

Coming Events

2-6 p.m. FRIDAY, MAY 23: Book Signing and Birthday Party at my second home on Vancouver Island, 581 Nassau Crescent, Qualicum Beach, BC. Co-hosted by Mulberry Bush Books. Chat with author, refreshments. Come and go as you please!

1-5 p.m. FRIDAY, JUNE 13: Book signing at Chapters Nanaimo, Woodgrove Centre, 6670 Mary Ellen Drive. For info: 250-390-0380.

2-4 p.m. SATURDAY, JUNE 22: Book Launch and Tea Party at Our SPACE, the historic schoolhouse at 4684 Beach Avenue, Peachland, BC. Hosted by Peachland Arts Council. Author presentation at 2:30 p.m. Admission $5. For info: 250-767-7422.

1:30-3 p.m. MONDAY, JULY 21: North Battleford Public Library, author presentation and book signing. For info: 306-445-3206.

7-9 p.m. WEDNESDAY, JULY 23: Saskatoon author talk and book signing, hosted by McNally Robinson Booksellers, 3130-8th Street East. For info: 306-955-3599.

Here’s a complete event schedule (so far): Book Event Schedule.

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My Historic Log Cabin

Friends, I first published this blog five years ago, in May 2020. Because I have so many new subscribers since then, I hope that my faithful long-time followers won’t mind if I share it again.

About twenty years ago, I caught wind of an old log cabin in our town of Invermere, British Columbia that was about to be bulldozed to make way for new development.

Old log cabin tilts to one side, missing the front door and the front window and part of the roof, logs great and weathered, surrounded by green trees in Invermere, British Columbia.

When I first saw it, I wasn’t impressed.

Back side of old log cabin in Invermere, British Columbia is very weathered, the window opening covered with a blue metal sign, garbage lying around on the ground, beside a mossy bank and overhung with green branches.

The roof was shot and it was in pretty rough shape.

Roof of old log cabin in Invermere, British Columbia is made of what appears to be decaying sheets of plywood, covered with brown moss and overhung with spruce branches.

The cabin had belonged to former newspaper publishers Ron and Belle Ede, rumoured to be an old trapper’s cabin before they acquired it. I just couldn’t bear to let this piece of local history disappear.

I convinced my husband that we could use it for a garden shed.

We hired our friend Chris Hamp to dismantle it, numbering all the logs.

Old log cabin in Invermere, British Columbia being dismantled, with only three rows of logs remaining on the foundation and the rest of the logs piled on the ground, surrounded by spruce trees.

When he finished, he moved the logs into our yard.

Two men in Invermere, British Columbia use a red hoist attached to a blue cab and a flat-deck truck to lift a bundle of logs into the air with chains, in an area surrounded by spruce trees.

Chris then set about reassembling it. Of course, this turned out to be a much bigger job than we anticipated. He peeled the logs, added a new cedar shake roof, new windows, and a front deck.

A young man in a red jacket and a white baseball cap wields an orange chainsaw while standing on a partly-constructed log wall.

By the time he finished, it was far too nice to use as a garden shed, so we turned it into a bunkie instead. It’s now a beautiful addition to our acreage, both inside and out. I had the pleasant task of furnishing it with many of the vintage items we already owned.

Charming small golden-hued log cabin in Invermere, British Columbia has a small deck bearing a set of moose antlers, one small door and one window, standing in a grassy area and backed by towering evergreen trees.

Log Cabin Tour

Welcome to my log cabin! Please duck your head when stepping through the front door — it’s on the short side, and several people have almost suffered concussions here.

Open door of log cabin with a horseshoe hanging on the wall overhead, a metal star on one side and a carved wooden decoration on the other side, reveals the dim interior of the cabin.

The floor couldn’t be saved, so we built a plywood floor, painted it, and covered it with an old rug that had been rolled up in a closet for the past twenty years. (I knew that rug would come in handy sometime!)

These bunk beds once belonged to my little daughters. On the bottom bunk is a Hudson’s Bay Company blanket that I bought at a local garage sale for five dollars. Since my forefathers were Scottish immigrants who worked for The Bay, it’s a nod to my own heritage.

This baby carrier was something I purchased at a local second-hand shop. The owner told me it came from the Northwest Territories.

Red metal framed indigenous baby carrier has beaded flowers on the maroon velvet cover, stuffed with sheepskin and laced shut with rawhide laces.

We owned two pairs of old snowshoes from my husband’s sojourn in the Yukon when he was a young man.

Two pairs of vintage snowshoes woven from sinews and strapped with leather lean against one wall in a log cabin.

There’s even a story behind this window. Since the glass in the old log cabin was broken, local pioneer Ray Crook (who died at the age of 103), gave me this window to use instead. His family owned Crook’s Cabins in Kootenay National Park, and it came from one of the original cabins.

(Ray worked at a local prison camp for conscientious objectors in the Second World War. Read more here: The Guys Who Wouldn’t Go.)

A vintage oil lamp stands on a table in front of a window that overlooks a lovely scene of forest, lake and mountains.

The steamer trunk was brought over from Scotland by my great-grandfather. The wooden bench came from a lawyer’s office in North Battleford, Saskatchewan, where my mother worked as a legal secretary.

The goatskin (which I refuse to have in the house, although I think it looks appropriate in the log cabin) was from a mountain goat killed by my youthful husband when he used to hunt.

A goatskin hangs over the back of a wooden bench seat in a log cabin, beside a small glass-fronted cabinet filled with china and copper pots.

In the corner cabinet is my collection of royal memorabilia and copper pots.

A cookie tin bearing the image of young Queen Elizabeth sits on a shelf inside a cabinet surrounded by other royal-themed china, while the shelf below has a variety of copper kettles and pots.

Kids always get a kick out of playing with this miniature wood stove which I found years ago in Mexico. Apparently it actually works, although we have never tried lighting a fire in it.

A miniature wood stove made from silver-coloured metal is finely detailed and even has a tiny frying pan resting on the surface.

I have so many books in the main house that I was happy to move some of my Western-themed collection out to the cabin.

A bookshelf holds a row of about a dozen Western-themed books with cloth covers, including several novels by Zane Grey.

This view shows the front window. Underneath is an old wood stove, salvaged from a nearby farmhouse that was being torn down. In order to use the stove, we would have to run a stovepipe up to the ceiling and cut a hole in the roof. If we did, the cabin would be winterized.

An old buffet made of dark carved wood holds a bronze sculpture of a cowboy on horseback, aiming his rife, while beside the buffet sits an old wooden stove with three blue enamel coffee pots on the surface.

These tiny cowboy boots were worn by one of our little daughters when she was two years old.

A small pair of children's cowboy boots, dark leather on the uppers and lighter coloured leather on the feet, with scuffed toes, stand on a wooden buffet.

“The Rattler” is the name of this bronze sculpture, a gift from my dear departed Dad. The cowboy is aiming over his shoulder at a rattlesnake.

Bronze sculpture labelled The Rattler, is a cowboy on a bucking horse, aiming his rifle over one shoulder, presumably at a rattlesnake.

I have a weakness for old coffee pots, but so far I’m holding the line at three.

Three large metal coffeepots sit on the surface of an old wood stove, illuminated by sunlight from the window beside them, one blue, one speckled, and one silver in color.

I’m not sure where these came from, but my mother wore these beaded moccasins around the house for years.

A pair of well-worn moccasins, heavily beaded with red flowers and green leaves.

Our youngest daughter Melinda caught this jackfish in Turtle Lake, Saskatchewan when she was just nine years old.

A large mounted jackfish hangs on a cabin wall, its mouth open, surrounded by fake rocks and a plaque saying it was caught in Jackfish Lake, Saskatchewan.

My Dad burned this little poem into a chunk of leather and gave it to me many years ago. It’s one of my most cherished possessions.

A small rectangular piece of leather hangs from a cabinet knob with leather straps, and burned into the leather are the words: "May your horse never stumble, your cinch never break, your stomach never grumble and your heart never ache."

This dreamcatcher was made by an artist in Kimberley, B.C. and given to me by my friend Eileen Fiell, along with the moose antlers on the front deck.

Large circular dreamcatcher adorned with feathers and beads hangs from wall of log cabin.

I think the antlers add a certain panache!

Large pair of snowy white moose antlers sit on the wooden deck of a golden-hued log cabin, illuminated with sunshine.

Two of our kids found this longhorn skull on a riverbank in Mexico. When we told them they couldn’t keep it, they cried so hard that we ended up smuggling it home.

I love my wee cabin and I hope you enjoyed the tour!

Vintage cow skull with two curved horns hangs from the wall of a log cabin.

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Happy Victoria Day!

Canada is the only country in the world to celebrate Queen Victoria’s birthday on May 24, although the statutory holiday falls on the Monday before her birthday and kicks off our short summer season.

Born on May 24, 1819, Queen Victoria reigned over the British Empire for 63 years, seven months and two days.

She was the longest-reigning monarch in British history, until her record was broken by her great-great-granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth II, in 2015.

Black and white portrait of round-faced Queen Victoria wearing a crown over a lace headdress and adorned with jewels, 1882.

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Book of the Month

My book club chose this book, and I’m glad they did. I thoroughly enjoyed this simple memoir from a young guy struggling to overcome his drug addiction in London, England and how an adopted stray cat gave him a reason to live. I learned a lot about life on the street, but it was an uplifting story and a great book club choice.

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Friends, I hope you are enjoying the summer sunshine and reading plenty of good books. If you have any comments or questions about Finding Flora, drop me an email! Your next newsletter will arrive on June 18, 2025.

Until then, I am affectionately yours — Elinor

Bestselling Historical Fiction Author

Log Cabin Fever

But First, My Book News

Coming Events

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My Historic Log Cabin

Log Cabin Tour

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Happy Victoria Day!

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Book of the Month

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