A farmer’s mission from Saanichton to help pastoralists ravaged by drought and fire is now well underway in a second month – and extends even further.

Bryce Rashleigh has shipped bales as far east as Wainwright, Alta., And is heading next week to a cattle and grain farm near Acadia Valley, Saskatchewan.

“They have no food… everything has been so dry,” Rashleigh said on Friday.

So far, Rashleigh has shipped 21 loads of hay – each containing 60 large round bales – to cattle, dairy and horse farms on the island and over the water as far north as Williams Lake and to farms around Armstrong, Kamloops and Kelowna.

Rashleigh said he was not taking advantage of the sales. He sells the balls for $ 50 each, the cost of their production. Shipping ranges from $ 33 a bale in Kamloops and over $ 40 in Kelowna. The further east one is, the higher the shipping costs for the recipient farmer.

This has been a lifeline for operators affected by drought and forest fires and facing higher feed prices and tough decisions about selling some of their animals.

Rashleigh said the Victorians have stepped up their donations to help offset shipping costs, with more than $ 5,500 donated so far.

Even Rashleigh’s fuel supplier helped fill a semi-truck with $ 2,100 in gasoline.

Nanaimo-based Penta Transport hauled 18 loads, offering a Williams Lake rancher free delivery, including coverage of $ 1,200 in ferry fees.

“We’re a family business and we know what some of these ranchers are going through,” said Kendra Slawson, Penta Transport dispatcher, who was instrumental in organizing the expeditions.

“It’s a wonderful operation to participate in. “

Slawson credits the Rashleigh family. “The respect they show our pilots is wonderful. They feed them, they offer them a place to shower… it was hard on our drivers during COVID. “

Rashleigh delivered almost half of his farm’s 3,000 large bales. The pandemic has hit its biggest customer, the horse-drawn carriage industry, and has reduced demand from Island dairy and beef producers.

Farmers in the west were in a perfect storm amid a prolonged drought that depleted water sources and hay crops, and pushed up grain prices as yields wither in the heat and that parasites such as grasshoppers proliferate. Forest fires have also destroyed pastures, forcing the displacement of some herds. Some ranchers sell just to recoup the costs.

Selling cows means there will be no way for ranchers to produce calves next year or in the future.

“We have young families who are just trying to get enough fodder for their cattle to survive the winter… it’s their livelihood,” Rashleigh said from his farm, where he grows barley and wheat. wheat, and raises poultry.

Rashleigh said the trip to the Saskatchewan ranch is 1,370 kilometers from its front door. He personally pays the freight on one of the three loads because they have helped each other in the past.

“Farmers help each other,” Rashleigh said.

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