Same Ground: Chasing Family Down the California Gold Rush Trail

by Russell Wangersky

“Read him.” ― George Elliott Clarke, author of I & I and George and Rue An award-winning author goes looking for the meaning of family and belonging on a glorious wild-goose-chase road trip across middle America Wangersky’s great-great-grandfather crossed the continent in search of gold in 1849. William Castle Dodge was his name, and he was 22 years old. He wrote a diary of that eventful journey that comes into the author’s hands 160 years later. And typically, quixotically, Wangersky decides to follow Dodge’s westward trail across the great bulging middle of America, not in search of gold but something even less that elusive thing called family. What ensues becomes this story, by turns hilarious and profound, about a very long trip ― by car, in Wangersky’s case, and on mule and foot in Dodge’s. Interweaving his experiences on the road with Dodge’s diary, the author contemplates the human need to hunt for roots and meaning as he ― and Dodge ― encounter immigrants who risk everything to be somewhere else, while only glimpsing those who are there already and who want to hold onto their claim in the stream of human migration. Same Ground is a story about what time washes away and what persists ― and what we might find, unexpectedly, if we go looking.

Genres: Travel, Memoir

355 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 27, 2022

About the author

"Raised in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, .. his father was a professor of oceanography at Dalhousie University and his mother, a marine biologist, ran a tight ship.. Predilection for dangerous .. and explosions" led to "rugby at 16 -- gave it up two broken noses, three cracked ribs and six concussions later" at age 32. At Arcadia University, he was also "a volunteer firefighter in Wolfville.

With "wife Barbara Pratt moved to Toronto" in 1984, back to St John's Newfoundland in 1986, five years reporter at Sunday Express and CBC TV. Two sons later, joined The Telegram daily in 1997, became editor by 2002. Now married to Leslie Vryenhoek, lives and works in St John's.

Reviews

[MJ Beauchamp · Rating 4 out of 5]

Same Ground, by Russell Wangersky, is a precious account of the author’s cross-country road trip to California, following his great-great grandfather’s 1849 journey out west to find gold - noted in a journal that survived and got passed down.

Of course much has changed in over 160 years; highways everywhere and landscapes for the most part unrecognizable. It’s 2016 and Wangersky and his wife now try their best to keep up, with many stops and research along the way.

The book’s most heart-warming moments come when they succeed, finding a marker or landmark, great-great grandson and great-great grandfather together in the same location yet years apart:

“We were scuffling around in the desert exactly were the trail ran, our feet in the same place as his feet in 1849. It’s almost like a physical shudder, every time it happens. Every time I can know for certain, for absolute certain, that my feet and his are on the same ground, that my eyes are staring out at the same line of horizon, that the dust is, at least to some measurable degree, the same dust.“

A moving memoir about family, the passing of time, and all that’s left behind.

Thank you to ECW Press for the gifted copy.

[Janilyn Kocher · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like these types of travelogues. Wangersky’s great great grandfather went overland to California in 1849. The author and his wife retraced his journey in 2016.
I liked reading people’s observations along the journey with adventures and different people one encounters.
They kept getting lost so I wondered why they just didn’t use GPS.
It may have been just the digital formatting, but the diary excepts were not distinct. I had difficulty discerning where the entires ended and the modern narrative resumed.
Thanks to ECW Press and NetGalley for the early read.

[Lady · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great read. I like the way that on finding a family diary the author follows in the foot steps from Canada to find the gold rush area in the diary. It was a very interesting read that I really enjoyed. I liked the way the book was dual timeline. Alternating between the diary travel entry and the authors own travels. The diary entries were rather shocking as I didn't realise how many mules actually died on the journey. I actually rated this book 3.5 stars rounded up as it was better than an average rating. It was wrote well and flowed nicely. There was lots of description. It just didn't grab my full attention and I was losing interest. I really enjoyed the diary entries but the authors travels wasn't that exciting. There were a few great moments though. And I recommend reading this if you love diary's of old timer gold rush travels. It was fun learning about how hard life was like on the trail. I couldn't believe how many hardships they had to go through. Especially just how many people didn't make it or even find gold or enough to bring home to support their family.
Many thanks to the author and publishers for bringing this enjoyable book to life.

[Sharyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book as the concept sounded so interesting. Unfortunately I gave up around 25 percent as I found the telling of the current day journey boring. That is the trouble with road trips - it's mostly eating and sleeping and the problems or otherwise encountered. The diary entries from 1849 were fascinating and I tried to skim through the book to just read those but the format made that impossible as there were no defined breaks between old and new. A lot of research has gone into this project and I am sure the author and his wife had a lot of fun in the execution of the trip. But it doesn't make a very good book for this reader. With thanks to NetGalley, the publishers and the author for an e-ARC to read and review.

[Anne Smith-Nochasak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Same Ground emerges as a rich and dynamic story of family, in which Wangersky draws his own conclusions about what defines family and home through his travels. The author balances description of colourful sights, personalities, and moments, with reflections on culture, migration, and values. His prose is vivid and honest; his insights invite the reader to probe deeply into the values of culture and family that shape us.
For those who travel to learn and to grow and not just to see, for those who acknowledge the complexity of family and life, and for those who look for a well-told story, this is a fascinating read. The companion book club guide is sure to generate some memorable conversations.

[Alyssa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was interesting topic to read about - and made me want to play Oregon Trail again. I've always been fascinated by people traveling across the country back in the 1800s when they're going into the unknown and coming across difficult crossings and paths without all the amenities we currently have. It is just wild.
As other reviewers have said, I found the diary entries the most interesting part of the book. Sometimes it seems like it would switch timelines after a few sentences, and sometimes it would be pages. There wasn't always a clear distinction so it made it confusing sometimes to realize you're back in the other timeline.

Thank you NetGalley and ECW Press Audio for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

The concept of this book is excellent. The author uses the 1800s diary entries of his great great grandfather to retrace the path he took across North America during gold rush times. The parallels of the diary and author’s more recent experiences crossing the continent provide thought provoking observations on urbanization, the state of middle America and family heritage.

It is long- even on audio- so be ready.

This book is for history lovers, fans of autobiographies/biographies, focused audiobook listeners.

[Tasia · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received this book through Goodreads giveaways.
I couldn't get into the story. I liked the exerts from the diary of the actual Gold Rush trail, but found the modern telling hard to read. It seemed very scattered and hard to follow. Could have been just me (two small children) where my brain couldn't keep a good pace, or it could be the way it was written.
Will try again in a few years!

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't often read non-fiction, but I found this book to be an overall enjoyable read. Although there were some parts that didn't grab my full attention, it was interesting, descriptive, and informative.
Thanks to ECW Press for the ARC.

[The Master · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like the dual narratives of this travelogue as Wangersky traces the path of his ancestor from Canada to the land of the gold rush. As times slow, but that would echo the pace of earlier travel. The best parts were the glimpses into the past.

[Craig · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very colorful writer, but I can't handle any more descriptions of the shower door in the motel room, or the clerks in the convenience store. That's not why I picked up this title. A slow meandering read, if that's what you like.