While people were able to drive themselves away from the oncoming Elephant Hill fire, cattle were not.

Across the Cariboo-Chilcotin this summer, ranchers have stayed behind, working against the clock to find their cattle before, during and after wildfires sweep through their range land.

For the past two weeks, rancher Gus Horn has been on the range working with fellow rancher and friend Ron Eden, to move Eden鈥檚 cattle away from the oncoming fire.

He鈥檚 seen corrals and fences burned because of slow moving fire and spoken to many who鈥檝e been in the way when fire has moved quickly. In the words of one equipment operator: 鈥渃ows exploded like popcorn,鈥� Horn said.

鈥淲hat I鈥檝e seen burn is there is nothing that won鈥檛 burn.鈥�

鈥淐learcuts that are five or ten years old will burn; they鈥檒l burn slower because there鈥檚 less fuel. Fresh clearcuts that were done last winter; they burned really hot because there is so much dry matter and little green,鈥� Horn said.

鈥淔or the most part, willows and aspen slows it right down. I鈥檝e seen wetland meadows that are fine and I鈥檝e seen wetland meadows that are burnt from one side to the other because there is so much old dry matter that is there.鈥�

The ranchers were part of a group spread over Eden鈥檚 range, which stretches directly in the fire鈥檚 path from Jack Frost Lake to North Bonaparte Road south of Green Lake. All were working to move cattle before the fire reached them, or failing that, once the fire had passed through.

The ranchers were allowed past the checkpoints thanks to help from the BC Cattlemen鈥檚 Association.

鈥淭he BC Cattlemen鈥檚 Association has done an amazing job of negotiation and navigating bureaucracy with government to be sure that we鈥檝e got permits to go in there,鈥� Horn said.

The ranchers rode through fire-hit territory on horses, looking through meadows or at water holes for the cattle.

鈥淵ou just go out here day after day. You look for tracks. We鈥檝e gotten great tips from the people that we鈥檝e spoken with and given our phone number to,鈥� Horn said.

鈥淓ven if you get five [or] two head at a time, and if you鈥檙e lucky on a good day you鈥檒l get 12 head,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e counted into the corrals yesterday and we were maybe like two or three head short, so the importance of being allowed out there because you don鈥檛 know when things are going to blow up worse than they are.鈥�

The horsemen round the cattle to corrals, both already in place or temporary ones where they try to get them loaded onto a truck and out of the fire zone as soon as possible.

鈥淚t adds up. You think you鈥檝e spend all day and you only got five head 鈥� well, it was better than none. If you get five head for ten days you鈥檝e got 50 head. A life is a life.鈥�

For his part, Horn says he has yet to encounter any animals hurt by the fire, because it moved slowly enough for the animals to move out of the way where he鈥檚 been looking, but says others have found dead or injured cows elsewhere.

Generally, he says the animals, once found, are easy to move, preferring to move homeward in smaller groups.

The group has also tried to stay aware of their own safety.

For the most part, the officials and people the group has encountered on the local level have been helpful, pointing them in the direction of animals, or sharing their own stories from the front lines.

鈥淭o a person, everybody that we鈥檝e met, with one exception, has been as gracious as you鈥檇 expect them to be under the circumstances,鈥� Horn said.

Help from the local range office has been available and accommodating, keeping the ranchers in the loop, and the importance of being allowed into the fire zone has been instrumental in protecting the animals.

When they鈥檝e encountered resistance to their presence, Horn called it wasted time.

Still, he has questions from what he鈥檚 seen.

鈥淭here should be a transparent review of what the wildfire policies are,鈥� he says.

While most of the contract crews he鈥檚 met on the fire line have been local, he also says that local knowledge should be prioritized when it comes to fighting fires.

鈥淚 think there needs to be a clear understanding for communities anywhere what wildfire management really means and how and when resources are spent and allocated and where.鈥�

He also points to forest management before any of the fires even started, questioning whether forestry management practices have been effective in preventing fires from getting this big.

He鈥檚 watched flames 鈥� that he said could have been easily stopped 鈥� take out Eden鈥檚 corrals or vital fencing that separates range land.

鈥淧eople are going to be cleaning up this mess until Christmas,鈥� he says.