Hope Tourist Attractions
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The township of Hope (42 m (138 ft)), amidst the often snowcapped Coastal Mountains, was originally a fort erected there in 1848/49 by the Hudson's Bay Company at the mouth of the Coquihalla River. The territory of the lower reaches of the Columbia River, the old route for the fur traders, was transferred to the USA with the Treaty of Oregon in 1846, and the Hudson's Bay Company was forced to find new ways into the interior. When gold was discovered on the Fraser River in 1858, a new town grew up next to the old trading post, which could now be reached by river steamers from Fort Langley. The first sawmills appeared, then in the 1870s silver deposits were found nearby and the first Waggon Road to New Westminster was built. The building of the railroad which started in the 1880s also acted as a boost to the whole region.Nowadays the TransCanada Highway runs north from Hope through the Fraser River Canyon, and the wonderfully scenic Crowsnest Highway 3 goes east. A 134 km (83 mi.) stretch of mountain and valley road takes in several mountain ranges, from Hope to the 1352 m (4437 ft) Allison Pass in Manning Provincial Park. Coquihalla Highway 5, opened in 1986/87, also starts here. This new, four-lane highway which provides a 90 km (56 mi.) shortcut to Kamloops (toll road), goes round the Fraser Canyon and acts as a relief road to the TransCanada Highway, taking much of the through traffic. Surrounded by lakes, rivers and mountains, Hope is a great place for outdoor pursuits as well as being the gateway to Manning Provincial Park, the Canadian continuation of the North Cascades National Park in the USA.The Crowsnest Highway starts in the west at Hope, about two hours drive from Vancouver, 18 km (11 mi.) from Hope the road passes Hope Slide, a massive landslip; 8 km (5 mi.) further on lies Manning Provincial Park.
Christ Church National Historic Site
Christ Church National Historic Site, a few blocks down the street from the Hope Museum, is a wooden Anglican church dating from 1861 and is one of the oldest churches in British Columbia.It is a stunning example of an Anglican Parish church in the gothic revival style. Its leaded glass windows were brought by steamship from England around the southern tip of South America. Christ Church is the legacy of Reverend A.D. Pringle who began ministering on the banks of the Fraser River at Fort Hope during the gold rush of 1858. Pringle lobbied for the construction of Christ Church and went on to lead the parish from 1859 to 1864. The parish has been continuously operating ever since - the longest period for any church on the British Columbia mainland.The Old Hope Cemetery (formerly Anglican) can be explored, a short walk from Christ Church. You'll be captivated by the people and stories of frontier life in this wilderness outpost that was Fort Hope. If you want to see the inside of the church it's best to attend a service, which are still held regularly every Sunday, or come on a walking tour of the church and grounds. Tours happen daily through the summer season and school programs can be booked in the spring and fall.
Hope Visitor Centre & Museum Complex
The Hope Museum is also in the same building as the Hope Visitor Centre. The museum explores the history of Hope from the original Stolo First Nations peoples to the days of the Hudson Bay Company fur traders that founded Fort Hope and the Cariboo gold-rush through to the early pioneer loggers, miners and settlers. Nearby is Memorial Park with over three dozen unique wood carvings created with a chainsaw.
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