100 Mile House With a population of roughly 2,000, it claims a couple of lofty titles, including “Handcrafted Log Home Capital of North America” and is the self-proclaimed “International Nordic Ski Capital”, boasting the world’s tallest pair of cross-country skis at the Visitor Centre, and has one of B.C.’s most active Nordic clubs. Enjoy an easy stroll along the paved, wheelchair accessible walkway of the 100 Mile Marsh Wildlife Sanctuary - depart from the Visitor Centre, and keep an eye out for various bird species throughout the year. 100 Mile House was originally a fur trading station on the Hudson’s Bay Company Brigade Trail (Kamloops to Fort Alexandria), and was an important stagecoach stop on the Gold Rush Trail by the early 1860s. Cattle ranching and the forestry industry sustained 100 Mile House after the gold rush ended, and today it is the main service centre for outlying communities and industries. One of the area’s popular attractions is the 108 Mile Ranch Historic Site, a collection of lakeside heritage buildings including the largest log barn of its kind left in Canada. The site features a museum, stone sculptures, refurbished log buildings and period implements and tools, and is a great picnic stop along your journey.
The Central Cariboo
Adrenaline junkies are lured by the trails snaking through the hillsides around Williams Lake, an area Bike Magazine dubbed “the Shangri-La of mountain biking”. To the east, wonderful fishing and kayaking can be found in the Horsefly area. Time it right and you can spot grizzlies fishing riverside for salmon. The salmon migrate by the millions up the Quesnel River to spawn in the Horsefly and Mitchell rivers. Although forestry, mining and tourism may be the most important financial drivers in the region, cowboy culture is still king here.
the Cariboo
It’s also ranch country, popular for trail riding. Near the west end of Highway 24 is Lone Butte, a peaceful little village named for the solitary volcano plug that rises skyward. Enjoy an invigorating hike up the “butte,” or research the community’s historic past. Lone Butte is a great home base for touring and exploring the restaurants, cafés, shops, lakes, resorts and guest ranches spanning the length of “The Fishing Highway”.
Prospectors and merchants ventured here in 1859 after the news of a big gold strike on the Horsefly River, 65km/40mi east of Williams Lake. The following year, William Pinchbeck, a tough police constable from Victoria, arrived to keep law and order; juggling jobs as lawyer, judge, and jailer while building a homestead and rest house with restaurant, saloon, general store and race-horse track. Race days attracted hundreds of spectators, including one memorable contest in 1861 when the stakes were a whopping $100,000. Pinchbeck was a busy man, his roadhouse, already famous for its White Wheat Whiskey (from his own distillery at 25 cents a shot), suffered no lack of business and he came to own almost the entire Williams Lake River Valley. Pinchbeck’s grassy gravesite above his former ranch is one of the most famous in the Cariboo, overlooking the Williams Lake Stampede Grounds.
Canim Lake Canim Lake is 35km/22mi northeast of 100 Mile House and is one of the largest lakes in the Cariboo at 37km/23mi long. It is surrounded by meadows, mountains and forested hills, with resorts dotting its shoreline and a vast pebble beach that is a remnant of the glacial age. Summertime offers hiking, horseback riding, canoeing, boating and fishing against a backdrop of magnificent waterfalls, volcanic cones near Spanish Creek, and ancient pictographs and pit houses at Deception Creek. Winter fun includes snowmobiling, ice fishing, backcountry skiing and snowshoeing. Lac la Hache The village has been dubbed “the longest town in the Cariboo” for how its fishing resorts, ranches and vacation homes dot the lake’s 19km/12mi long shoreline. Long before the lure of wealth brought fur traders to this area, the Secwepemc (shi-HUEP-muh-k) and Chilcotin (chilko-teen) First Nations moved through the region. The Secwepemc established pit houses near present-day Lac la Hache, and the Chilcotins named the lake Kumatakwa, Queen of the Waters. Today, Lac la Hache is one of the most popular lakes along Highway 97, particularly with anglers, power boaters and water-skiers. In winter, the typically crisp and clear sunny days are perfect to enjoy a day of ice fishing on the lake, or to head for the slopes of nearby Mt. Timothy for a day of skiing and snowboarding.
Genuine hospitality, delicious meals and grand outdoor adventure!
Clinton BC // 1-877-655-2333
www.BIGBARRANCH.com 1-800-663-5885
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