Chilcotin Ranges
Encyclopedia
The Chilcotin Ranges are a subdivision of the Pacific Ranges
of the Coast Mountains
(in some classifications they are a separate subdivision). They lie on the inland lea of the Pacific Ranges
, abutting the Interior Plateau
of British Columbia
. Their northwestern end is near the head of the Klinaklini River
and their southeast end is the Fraser River
just north of Lillooet
; their northern flank is the edge of the Plateau
while their southern is the north bank of the Bridge River
. In some reckonings they do not go all the way to the Fraser
but end at the Yalakom River, which is the North Fork of the Bridge
.
They are not one range but a collection of ranges, often very distinct from each other. There are three major named subranges:
To the west of the western end of the Chilcotin Ranges, and considered by some to be part of the group, are:
South of which are the Waddington Range
and the Homathko Icefield
.
, the Ts'il?os Provincial Park
(where the '?' is a glottal stop) and Big Creek Provincial Park
, and the Spruce Lake Protected Area
and Churn Creek Protected Area
.
was established in the 1990s but was downgraded in 2007 to the Spruce Lake Protected Area
has been established, but its political status is uncertain and the area preserved is greatly reduced from the original proposals to protect it, which began in the 1930s during the heyday of the Bridge River
goldfield towns just to the south.
Historically this region was the hunting territory of Chief Hunter Jack of the Lakes Lillooet
, whose big-game hunting business shared the region with hunters of the Tsilhqot'in
people. The shared use of the area north of the Bridge River
and Gun Creek was part of the settlement of an early-19th-century peace which had ended a long and bloody war between Hunter Jack's people and the Tsilhqot'in
. Trails from the Bridge River Country
led over the many ranges of the region to Taseko Lake
and Chilko Lake
in the Chilcotin Country
, and also east across the Camelsfoot Range
to the Fraser River
near Big Bar.
Though no mines have ever been found in the proposed protected area, other than a few marginal ones in the vicinity of Eldorado Mountain, the south flank of Big Dog Mountain at the northwest end of the Shulaps Range
was the site of a major gold excitement in 1941, connected with the interests who then owned the Bralorne
-Pioneer Mine mines nearby. Physically daunting efforts to reach the alpine-elevation mine site over the Shulaps Range
in order to preserve rights to the claim in the allotted time period almost destroyed the large pack-train, but the papers got filed. Those claims were shuffled aside during World War II but remained on the map and are currently under exploitation as the Blue Creek Mine. Other large mine prospects in the area include copper diggings covering the slopes of Red Mountain, the highest in the Camelsfoot Range just north of the Blue Creek Mine.
The area's unique and distinct landscape and ecology, so different even from the rest of the Chilcotin Ranges or the rest of the Bridge River Country
, is what made it stand out amid a region already wild and extremely beautiful and why it's a long-term candidate for protection. The neighbouring Dickson
, Shulaps
and Bendor Range
s are all unprotected and have been or are being heavily logged, except for special preserves in alpine areas of the Shulaps and in its neighbour to the east, the Camelsfoot Range
.
Many on the environmentalist side hope that the creation of Ts'ilos
and Big Creek Provincial Park
will help shore up the protection of the Spruce Lake Protected Area
. Hunting guide Ted (Chilco) Choate of Gaspard Lake, on the Chilcotin Plateau
just northeast of the Spruce Lake Protected Area
has joined in the call to combine all these three parks, plus the Churn Creek Protected Area
to their northeast, plus some of the surrounding country and the deep, much higher heart of the Pacific Ranges
into a National Park
. Industry and government remain committed to shared use and sustainable planning.
and beyond in the Thompson
-Okanagan. This has generated protests on both sides of the environment vs. resource quarrel, but also instigated a stakeholder committee known as an Integrated Resource Management Process Unit which has had varying degrees of success at resolving disputes and planning land-use in the region.
Pacific Ranges
The Pacific Ranges are the southernmost subdivision of the Coast Mountains portion of the Pacific Cordillera. Located entirely within British Columbia, Canada, they run northwest from the lower stretches of the Fraser River to Bella Coola, north of which are the Kitimat Ranges.The Pacific Ranges...
of the Coast Mountains
Coast Mountains
The Coast Mountains are a major mountain range, in the Pacific Coast Ranges, of western North America, extending from southwestern Yukon through the Alaska Panhandle and virtually all of the Coast of British Columbia. They are so-named because of their proximity to the sea coast, and are often...
(in some classifications they are a separate subdivision). They lie on the inland lea of the Pacific Ranges
Pacific Ranges
The Pacific Ranges are the southernmost subdivision of the Coast Mountains portion of the Pacific Cordillera. Located entirely within British Columbia, Canada, they run northwest from the lower stretches of the Fraser River to Bella Coola, north of which are the Kitimat Ranges.The Pacific Ranges...
, abutting the Interior Plateau
Interior Plateau
The Interior Plateau comprises a large region of central British Columbia, and lies between the Cariboo and Monashee Mountains on the east, and the Hazelton Mountains, Coast Mountains and Cascade Range on the west. The continuation of the plateau into the United States is known there as the...
of British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
. Their northwestern end is near the head of the Klinaklini River
Klinaklini River
The Klinaklini River is one of the major rivers of the Pacific Ranges section of the Coast Mountains in British Columbia. It begins in the northern basins of the Pantheon Range to the north of Mount Waddington and briefly heads northeast onto the Chilcotin Plateau before bending around...
and their southeast end is the Fraser River
Fraser River
The Fraser River is the longest river within British Columbia, Canada, rising at Fraser Pass near Mount Robson in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for , into the Strait of Georgia at the city of Vancouver. It is the tenth longest river in Canada...
just north of Lillooet
Lillooet, British Columbia
Lillooet is a community on the Fraser River in western Canada, about up the British Columbia Railway line from Vancouver. Situated at an intersection of deep gorges in the lee of the Coast Mountains, it has a dry climate- of precipitation is recorded annually at the town's weather station,...
; their northern flank is the edge of the Plateau
Interior Plateau
The Interior Plateau comprises a large region of central British Columbia, and lies between the Cariboo and Monashee Mountains on the east, and the Hazelton Mountains, Coast Mountains and Cascade Range on the west. The continuation of the plateau into the United States is known there as the...
while their southern is the north bank of the Bridge River
Bridge River
The Bridge River is, or was, a major tributary of British Columbia's Fraser River, entering that stream about six miles upstream from the town of Lillooet.-Name:Its name in the Lillooet language is Xwisten , sometimes spelled Nxwisten or Nxo-isten)...
. In some reckonings they do not go all the way to the Fraser
Fraser River
The Fraser River is the longest river within British Columbia, Canada, rising at Fraser Pass near Mount Robson in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for , into the Strait of Georgia at the city of Vancouver. It is the tenth longest river in Canada...
but end at the Yalakom River, which is the North Fork of the Bridge
Bridge River
The Bridge River is, or was, a major tributary of British Columbia's Fraser River, entering that stream about six miles upstream from the town of Lillooet.-Name:Its name in the Lillooet language is Xwisten , sometimes spelled Nxwisten or Nxo-isten)...
.
They are not one range but a collection of ranges, often very distinct from each other. There are three major named subranges:
- Dickson RangeDickson RangeThe Dickson Range is a subrange of the Chilcotin Ranges subset of the Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains in southwest-central British Columbia. It is located just west of the town of Gold Bridge between the valley of Slim Creek to the north and Downton Lake Reservoir to the south...
- Shulaps RangeShulaps RangeThe Shulaps Range is a subrange of the Chilcotin Ranges subset of the Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains in southwest-central British Columbia. The range is 55 km NW–SE and 15 km SW–NE and 2,970 km² in area....
- Camelsfoot RangeCamelsfoot RangeThe Camelsfoot Range is a sub-range of the Chilcotin Ranges subdivision of the Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains in British Columbia.* The range is c...
(assigned to the Interior PlateauInterior PlateauThe Interior Plateau comprises a large region of central British Columbia, and lies between the Cariboo and Monashee Mountains on the east, and the Hazelton Mountains, Coast Mountains and Cascade Range on the west. The continuation of the plateau into the United States is known there as the...
in some definitions)
To the west of the western end of the Chilcotin Ranges, and considered by some to be part of the group, are:
- Pantheon RangePantheon RangeThe Pantheon Range is a subrange of the Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains in British Columbia. It is located between the edge of the Chilcotin Plateau at Tatla Lake on its northeast and the Klinaklini River on its west, with a southeastern boundary along Mosley Creek, a major tributary of the...
- Niut RangeNiut RangeThe Niut Range is 3600 km² in area. It is a subrange of the Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains of British Columbia, although in some classifications it is considered part of the Chilcotin Ranges . The Niut and is located in the angle of the Homathko River and its main west fork, Mosley...
South of which are the Waddington Range
Waddington Range
The Waddington Range is a subrange of the Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains in southwestern British Columbia, Canada. It is only about 4000 km² in area, relatively small in area within the expanse of the range, but it is the highest area of the Pacific Ranges and of the Coast Mountains, being...
and the Homathko Icefield
Homathko Icefield
The Homathko Icefield is an icefield in British Columbia, Canada. Officially named the Homathko Snowfield from 1950 until the current name was adopted in 1976, it is one of the largest icefields in the southern half of the Coast Mountains, with an area of over...
.
Provincial Parks
In recent years major provincial parks and protected areas have been created in the central-eastern part of the Chilcotin Ranges. These are the Big Creek Provincial ParkBig Creek Provincial Park
Big Creek Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada.It is adjoined on the south by the Spruce Lake Protected Area and on the west by Ts'il?os Provincial Park. Neighbouring on the east is the Churn Creek Protected Area.- References :...
, the Ts'il?os Provincial Park
Ts'il?os Provincial Park
Ts'il?os Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada. Ts'il?os is the official BC Parks designation for this provincial park, though sometimes it is written as "Ts'il-os", "Ts'yl-os", or "Tsylos"...
(where the '?' is a glottal stop) and Big Creek Provincial Park
Big Creek Provincial Park
Big Creek Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada.It is adjoined on the south by the Spruce Lake Protected Area and on the west by Ts'il?os Provincial Park. Neighbouring on the east is the Churn Creek Protected Area.- References :...
, and the Spruce Lake Protected Area
Spruce Lake Protected Area
The Spruce Lake Protected Area, was a 71,347-hectare Protected Area in the British Columbia provincial parks system 200 km north of Vancouver. The area had been the subject of an ongoing preservationist controversy since the 1930s. Formerly known variously as the Southern Chilcotin Mountains...
and Churn Creek Protected Area
Churn Creek Protected Area
The Churn Creek Protected Area, is a provincial protected area in British Columbia, Canada. It is a mix of dryland canyon and steppe and adjoining rangeland flanking the canyon of Churn Creek and that stream's confluence with the Fraser River at the northern apex of the Camelsfoot Range. The...
.
History of the Southern Chilcotin Mountains
This region is commonly (but incorrectly) known as the "South Chilcotin" and is the object of a protracted quarrel between preservationist movements and resource extraction proposals since the 1930s. A provincial parkProvincial park
A provincial park is a park under the management of a provincial or territorial government in Canada.While provincial parks are not the same as national parks, their workings are very similar...
was established in the 1990s but was downgraded in 2007 to the Spruce Lake Protected Area
Spruce Lake Protected Area
The Spruce Lake Protected Area, was a 71,347-hectare Protected Area in the British Columbia provincial parks system 200 km north of Vancouver. The area had been the subject of an ongoing preservationist controversy since the 1930s. Formerly known variously as the Southern Chilcotin Mountains...
has been established, but its political status is uncertain and the area preserved is greatly reduced from the original proposals to protect it, which began in the 1930s during the heyday of the Bridge River
Bridge River
The Bridge River is, or was, a major tributary of British Columbia's Fraser River, entering that stream about six miles upstream from the town of Lillooet.-Name:Its name in the Lillooet language is Xwisten , sometimes spelled Nxwisten or Nxo-isten)...
goldfield towns just to the south.
Historically this region was the hunting territory of Chief Hunter Jack of the Lakes Lillooet
St'at'imc
The St'át'imc are an Interior Salish people located in the southern Coast Mountains and Fraser Canyon region of the Interior of the Canadian province of British Columbia.St'át'imc culture displayed many features typical of Northwest Coast peoples: the...
, whose big-game hunting business shared the region with hunters of the Tsilhqot'in
Tsilhqot'in
The Tsilhqot'in are a Northern Athabaskan First Nations people that live in British Columbia, Canada...
people. The shared use of the area north of the Bridge River
Bridge River
The Bridge River is, or was, a major tributary of British Columbia's Fraser River, entering that stream about six miles upstream from the town of Lillooet.-Name:Its name in the Lillooet language is Xwisten , sometimes spelled Nxwisten or Nxo-isten)...
and Gun Creek was part of the settlement of an early-19th-century peace which had ended a long and bloody war between Hunter Jack's people and the Tsilhqot'in
Tsilhqot'in
The Tsilhqot'in are a Northern Athabaskan First Nations people that live in British Columbia, Canada...
. Trails from the Bridge River Country
Bridge River Country
The Bridge River Country is a historic geographic region and mining district in the Interior of British Columbia, Canada, lying between the Fraser Canyon and the valley of the Lillooet River, south of the Chilcotin Plateau and north of the Lillooet Ranges...
led over the many ranges of the region to Taseko Lake
Taseko Lakes
The Taseko Lakes are a pair of lakes, Upper Taseko Lake and Lower Taseko Lake, which are expansions of the upper Taseko River in the southern Chilcotin District of the Central Interior of British Columbia, Canada...
and Chilko Lake
Chilko Lake
Chilko Lake is a 180 km² lake in west-central British Columbia, at the head of the Chilko River on the Chilcotin Plateau. The lake is about 65 km long, with a southwest arm 10 km long. It is one of the largest lakes by volume in the province because of its great depth, and the...
in the Chilcotin Country
Chilcotin District
The Chilcotin District of British Columbia is usually known simply as "the Chilcotin", and also in speech commonly as "the Chilcotin Country" or simply Chilcotin. It is a plateau and mountain region in British Columbia on the inland lea of the Coast Mountains on the west side of the Fraser River....
, and also east across the Camelsfoot Range
Camelsfoot Range
The Camelsfoot Range is a sub-range of the Chilcotin Ranges subdivision of the Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains in British Columbia.* The range is c...
to the Fraser River
Fraser River
The Fraser River is the longest river within British Columbia, Canada, rising at Fraser Pass near Mount Robson in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for , into the Strait of Georgia at the city of Vancouver. It is the tenth longest river in Canada...
near Big Bar.
Though no mines have ever been found in the proposed protected area, other than a few marginal ones in the vicinity of Eldorado Mountain, the south flank of Big Dog Mountain at the northwest end of the Shulaps Range
Shulaps Range
The Shulaps Range is a subrange of the Chilcotin Ranges subset of the Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains in southwest-central British Columbia. The range is 55 km NW–SE and 15 km SW–NE and 2,970 km² in area....
was the site of a major gold excitement in 1941, connected with the interests who then owned the Bralorne
Bralorne, British Columbia
Bralorne is an historic underground gold mining community in the Bridge River District, some sixty dirt road miles west of the town of Lillooet.-Background:...
-Pioneer Mine mines nearby. Physically daunting efforts to reach the alpine-elevation mine site over the Shulaps Range
Shulaps Range
The Shulaps Range is a subrange of the Chilcotin Ranges subset of the Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains in southwest-central British Columbia. The range is 55 km NW–SE and 15 km SW–NE and 2,970 km² in area....
in order to preserve rights to the claim in the allotted time period almost destroyed the large pack-train, but the papers got filed. Those claims were shuffled aside during World War II but remained on the map and are currently under exploitation as the Blue Creek Mine. Other large mine prospects in the area include copper diggings covering the slopes of Red Mountain, the highest in the Camelsfoot Range just north of the Blue Creek Mine.
The area's unique and distinct landscape and ecology, so different even from the rest of the Chilcotin Ranges or the rest of the Bridge River Country
Bridge River
The Bridge River is, or was, a major tributary of British Columbia's Fraser River, entering that stream about six miles upstream from the town of Lillooet.-Name:Its name in the Lillooet language is Xwisten , sometimes spelled Nxwisten or Nxo-isten)...
, is what made it stand out amid a region already wild and extremely beautiful and why it's a long-term candidate for protection. The neighbouring Dickson
Dickson Range
The Dickson Range is a subrange of the Chilcotin Ranges subset of the Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains in southwest-central British Columbia. It is located just west of the town of Gold Bridge between the valley of Slim Creek to the north and Downton Lake Reservoir to the south...
, Shulaps
Shulaps Range
The Shulaps Range is a subrange of the Chilcotin Ranges subset of the Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains in southwest-central British Columbia. The range is 55 km NW–SE and 15 km SW–NE and 2,970 km² in area....
and Bendor Range
Bendor Range
The Bendor Range is a small but once-famous subrange of the Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains, about It is approximately 7,000 square kilometres in area and about 40 km long and about 18 km at its widest...
s are all unprotected and have been or are being heavily logged, except for special preserves in alpine areas of the Shulaps and in its neighbour to the east, the Camelsfoot Range
Camelsfoot Range
The Camelsfoot Range is a sub-range of the Chilcotin Ranges subdivision of the Pacific Ranges of the Coast Mountains in British Columbia.* The range is c...
.
Many on the environmentalist side hope that the creation of Ts'ilos
Ts'il?os Provincial Park
Ts'il?os Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada. Ts'il?os is the official BC Parks designation for this provincial park, though sometimes it is written as "Ts'il-os", "Ts'yl-os", or "Tsylos"...
and Big Creek Provincial Park
Big Creek Provincial Park
Big Creek Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada.It is adjoined on the south by the Spruce Lake Protected Area and on the west by Ts'il?os Provincial Park. Neighbouring on the east is the Churn Creek Protected Area.- References :...
will help shore up the protection of the Spruce Lake Protected Area
Spruce Lake Protected Area
The Spruce Lake Protected Area, was a 71,347-hectare Protected Area in the British Columbia provincial parks system 200 km north of Vancouver. The area had been the subject of an ongoing preservationist controversy since the 1930s. Formerly known variously as the Southern Chilcotin Mountains...
. Hunting guide Ted (Chilco) Choate of Gaspard Lake, on the Chilcotin Plateau
Interior Plateau
The Interior Plateau comprises a large region of central British Columbia, and lies between the Cariboo and Monashee Mountains on the east, and the Hazelton Mountains, Coast Mountains and Cascade Range on the west. The continuation of the plateau into the United States is known there as the...
just northeast of the Spruce Lake Protected Area
Spruce Lake Protected Area
The Spruce Lake Protected Area, was a 71,347-hectare Protected Area in the British Columbia provincial parks system 200 km north of Vancouver. The area had been the subject of an ongoing preservationist controversy since the 1930s. Formerly known variously as the Southern Chilcotin Mountains...
has joined in the call to combine all these three parks, plus the Churn Creek Protected Area
Churn Creek Protected Area
The Churn Creek Protected Area, is a provincial protected area in British Columbia, Canada. It is a mix of dryland canyon and steppe and adjoining rangeland flanking the canyon of Churn Creek and that stream's confluence with the Fraser River at the northern apex of the Camelsfoot Range. The...
to their northeast, plus some of the surrounding country and the deep, much higher heart of the Pacific Ranges
Pacific Ranges
The Pacific Ranges are the southernmost subdivision of the Coast Mountains portion of the Pacific Cordillera. Located entirely within British Columbia, Canada, they run northwest from the lower stretches of the Fraser River to Bella Coola, north of which are the Kitimat Ranges.The Pacific Ranges...
into a National Park
National park
A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual nations designate their own national parks differently A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or...
. Industry and government remain committed to shared use and sustainable planning.
Resource Interests
Mining interests in the area are few, although the area is rich in copper and there are rumours of pitchblende (which contains uranium), but in over 100 years of exploration no profitable deposits of anything have been found and no major mines established. In recent years, however, clearcut logging has penetrated the flanks of the area and pushed the boundaries of the park from south and east, feeding mills at Lillooet, British ColumbiaLillooet, British Columbia
Lillooet is a community on the Fraser River in western Canada, about up the British Columbia Railway line from Vancouver. Situated at an intersection of deep gorges in the lee of the Coast Mountains, it has a dry climate- of precipitation is recorded annually at the town's weather station,...
and beyond in the Thompson
Thompson River
The Thompson River is the largest tributary of the Fraser River, flowing through the south-central portion of British Columbia, Canada. The Thompson River has two main branches called the South Thompson and the North Thompson...
-Okanagan. This has generated protests on both sides of the environment vs. resource quarrel, but also instigated a stakeholder committee known as an Integrated Resource Management Process Unit which has had varying degrees of success at resolving disputes and planning land-use in the region.
External links
- Chilcotin Ranges in the Canadian Mountain Encyclopedia (contains descriptions of unnamed and unofficially named ranges and areas within the region)