The owners of a B.C. ranch came home last month to discover Christopher Hiscock, a complete stranger, had settled into their house. (Diego Cervo/Shutterstock)

A Nova Scotia man who made himself at home at the B.C. ranch of complete strangers began his cross-country journey by stealing a car in Porters Lake.

Christopher Hiscock, 33, was sentenced to probation in Kamloops provincial court on Monday for a bizarre case involving possession of stolen property and unlawfully being in a dwelling house.

Hiscock told the court that as he drove by a ranch in Little Fort, B.C., he loved it so much he turned off the highway and walked right in.

While there, he fed the cats and horses, drank coffee, watched television and even wrote in the diary of the homeowners.

New details are now emerging about how he got there. His trek to B.C. began when he stole a car in Porters Lake, N.S. He'd been living there and working at a swimming pool since May, according to an acquaintance.

Nova Scotia vehicle theft

Nova Scotia RCMP Const. Mark Skinner says police got a call about a stolen 2014 Ford Escape at about 11 p.m. on Sept. 13.

Hiscock was caught in Ontario, charged with the theft of the vehicle and held for a bail hearing. On Sept. 17, he pleaded guilty and was fined $400, Skinner said.

One stolen vehicle, it appears, was not enough. After his court appearance, Hiscock then stole a truck in Ontario and made his way to B.C.

On Sept. 20, the owners of a ranch about an hour north of Kamloops found Hiscock in their home. They walked right back out and flagged a passing police cruiser.

Hiscock had made a fire in the fireplace and there was meat thawing on the counter.

"The homeowners ended up going through their stuff and they found that this guy had done laundry, he'd fed the cats" Tim Petruk, a reporter with Kamloops This Week, told CBC News on Wednesday.

"He'd given hay to the horses. He'd shaved and showered and he wrote in their diary too."

Hiscock was sentenced to probation for the B.C. charges.

The court in Kamloops was told he had no prior criminal record, but it's not clear why authorities weren't aware he had been convicted less than two weeks earlier of stealing a vehicle from Nova Scotia.