Reynolds - Slow road to brownsville - a journey through the heart of the old west

I WANT TO GIVE A Toyota Priuss tank full of thanks to Nancy Flight, associate publisher at Greystone Books. Without her this book would be a limp replica of itself; she has boundless patience and a terrific editorial eye, both for the unnecessary and for the necessary that is somehow not-there-yet. Rob Sanders (rhymes with pandas), publisher of Greystone Books, also has terrific eyesand quite a nose and a dazzling smileand I have benefited from his excellent advice as this book was being planned and, as draft succeeded draft, from his ability to encourage while being critical. Editor Maureen Nicholsons advice and attention to detail have been invaluable. My agent, Tony Peake, has read and commented on the text more times than he should have had to; his opinions and enthusiasm have been invigorating. My wife, Penny Phillips, a professional editor, has read, commented, suggested, argued, corrected, and editedin many places, including the car, at all times of day and nightand she showed up in Denver, Colorado; I am a lucky man.

My thanks also to Claire Davies, Toby King, Judy Hevrdejs, Colleen MacMillan, Roy Williams, David Downing, Ben Yarde-Buller, John Smallwood, Charlie Fairey, Martha Reynolds, Grace Scott, Rose Reynolds, Andrew Jarman, and Freddie Broome. And to four Manitobans, Garry Harris, Wilbert Schoenrath, Douglas Gourlay, and Dale Wiebach, who took time to tell me all they could about the road.

Stuart Harris, who celebrated his one hundredth birthday in March this year, has been the source of many good things. In this instance, he showed me the road and sent me down it. I shall always be grateful.

Finally, my thanks to everyone I met on, or close to, Highway 83.

THE DATE GIVEN IS THE DATE OF FIRST PUBLICATION.

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Paul Benson (Ed.), Great Stories of the Wild West (1957)

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I LEARNED ABOUT THE ROAD in 2002, during my second visit to Swan River. I was there in May, when the land warms up after the great freeze that lasts five months. I had driven with Stuart to the west end of Main Street. We were planning to eat at the Chinese caf, but it was shut. As I turned the car round, Stuart flipped his thumb over his shoulder and said something I didnt catchwhich was strange because he usually draws out his words in a soft, deep lilt which is easy on the ear and easy to understand.

It sounded as if he had said, That road goes to Mexico.

But he couldnt have; we were thousands of miles from Mexico, in the remote north of Canada. I replayed the sound of his words in my mind. Did you say, That road goes to Mexico?

Sure. You bet. It does. I been down there. To Texas. And Arizona. It goes on down to the Mexican border.

Really? I was driving east again. We were well past the road now. I had barely noticed it: a blur of gray tarmac, wide enough for perhaps two cars.

Yep. Highway 83. Goes from here to Brownsville, Texas, right down there in the south, as far as you can go in the USA . Drive across a bridge and youre in Mexico.

You mean it starts hereHighway 83?

Yep.

Why?

I dont know. He raised a hand. Wouldve been Indian trails at first. They were everywherefrom here, north of here, right down through the prairies and into Mexico.

Why does it start here? Theres a road north from here, isnt there? I knew there was. It went to places even farther north, places I hadnt been to, with exotic nameslike Le Pas and Flin Flon.

Yep. You just carry on past Mr. Ribs, past the Westwood Inn, and you can drive north for two hundred milesmore if you want to. But thats not Highway 83. Thats Highway 10. Its different. Comes from southeast, from Brandon. Highway 83 runs due south from here, almost straight south all the way to Laredo, which is on the Rio Grande, which is the border with Mexico. He cleared his throat and tugged at the peak of his baseball cap. Then it goes on, southeast along the Rio Grande, to Brownsville, which is near the sea, the Gulf of Mexico.