Your Ticket to Ride - THE GOLD RUSH TRAIL

Hope - Kumsheen - Ashcroft - 100 Mile House - Williams Lake - Quesnel - Barkerville

647 kilometres/402 miles

Day One

Sunday, July 13th - Hope to Kumsheen   

116 km/72 mi

Leaving Hope on Day One, we will immediately join Highway 1 or the TransCanada Highway as it travels up the Fraser Canyon.  We are following the route of the Fraser River and will pass historic Yale where we will stop at the Museum for a water stop.  From there we pass through 3 tunnels before crossing over the Alexandra Bridge where participants can take a short side trip to walk over the Suspension Bridge.

From Alexandra, we go through one more tunnel before reaching our lunch stop.  After lunch and two more tunnels, we come to Hell's Gate Sky-Ride.  A quick trip on the Sky-Ride will provide an opportunity for some spectacular views of the Fraser River.  One last tunnel and we pass through Boston Bar.  We will have our second water stop just before starting the climb up Jackass Mountain.

Once over the mountain, we will pass by the Siska Art Gallery, one of the local native cultural centres, just before coming into Lytton.  Here we veer away from the Fraser and start to follow the Thompson River for only 6 km, before we turn into Kumsheen Rafing Resort, where we will spend the night.

Day Two

Monday, July 14th - Kumsheen to Ashcroft

75 km/47 mi

Day 2 has us continuing along the Thompson River up to Spence's Bridge where we will have our water stop.  From the water stop, we cross over the river and carry on north, still following the Thompson.  Just after the climb up Oregon Jack Hill, we will stop at the Rest Area for our lunch.  Then it is a short ride before we turn off to go down the hill into Ashcroft.

Day Three

Tuesday, July 15th - Ashcroft to 100 Mile House

145 km/90 mi

Our third day starts with a climb out of Ashcroft on Highway 97C up to Highway 1 where we will continue to head north.  At Cache Creek, we join Highway 97 and follow that passed Hat Creek Ranch and start the climb into Clinton where we will have our first water stop.  Still climbing we pass the rest area and continue north with a small detour off the highway to Chasm where we will have our lunch. 

Returning to the highway, we will follow it to 70 Mile House where we will leave the highway to follow the west side of Green Lake, a very scenic summer vacation area.  We will have another stop along the lake and then follow Watch Lake Road to reach our high point of the day before descending into Lone Butte.  From Lone Butte, we continue on backroads following the shore line of Horse Lake for a short piece before heading into 100 Mile House.

Day Four

Wednesday, July 16th - 100 Mile House to Williams Lake

93 km/58 mi

Day 4 is our downhill day, and we will be ready for it.  Leaving 100 Mile House on Highway 97, we take a short detour to take us on the east side of 108 Mile Lake and our first water stop.  Re-joining the highway, we continue northwest into Lac la Hache and along the side of this very long lake.  At the far end, we will stop at the picnic area of the Provincial Park for our lunch.  Be sure to bring your bathing suit and a towel and cool down in this magnificent lake.

We follow Highway 97 until the turn-off for Mission.  This quiet backroad brings us back to Highway 97 just east of Williams Lake.  At the junction with Highway 20, we head west and then turn into the Stampede Grounds where we will be spending the night.

Day Five

Thursday, July 17th - Williams Lake to Quesnel

124 km/77 mi

For Day 5, we will take the back road out of town and return to the Highway 97 just north of the town.   Following the highway we will stop in McLeese Lake for a water stop and then continue north.  Just north of McLeese Lake, we re-join the Fraser River and follow it and the railway all the way into Quesnel.

Just south of Quesnel, we leave the highway to skirt around the east side of Dragon Lake and then turn south to our campground on the shores of that lake.

Day Six

Friday, July 18th - Quesnel to Barkerville

94 km/58 mi

Our last day of cycling, we leave our campground and use the highway to make our way through the town of Quesnel.  Just north of the town, we turn off on Highway 26 on a roller coaster of a road which will take us into Barkerville.  Our campground is just west of the entrance to Barkerville.

Day Seven

Saturday, July 19th - Barkerville to Hope

Return bus to Hope

The bus trip back must be booked at the time you register.  Participants will load their luggage on the bus and their bikes will be transported back to Hope in the luggage truck.   Participants will be given a bag lunch for the trip.

Click here for the maps and elevation profiles 

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me, Danelle Laidlaw, toll-free at 1-877-606-BIKE (2453), (604) 737-0043/737-0374 Fax, or tourbc at tourbc.net (replace at with @).

As in previous years, our tour is fully supported with mobile tour leaders to help keep you on track and to point out interesting features along the route. Our medic will provide us with qualified emergency service personnel and mechanical support will be provided by Pete Pazdera,  of Guywires Mobile Cycle Tech.  Both the mechanical and the medical support personnel accompany the tour and monitor the course.  Bicycle racks are provided for our support vehicles by ATOC Topper Racks.  Each participant will receive daily route maps and notes.  In addition, the entire route is fully signed. 

All meals are provided on the tour as well as a morning and afternoon water and snack stop where appropriate pull-outs can be found.  Please note, breakfast on the first day, and dinner on the final day are not included in the Tour package.  Camping is provided and for those participants who wish to stay in motels, we will provide a list of motels close to our campgrounds.  It is your responsibility to ensure that your luggage is tagged and if you have chosen to stay in motels, you must give our truck driver a written list of the days you will be staying in motels and the name and address of each motel.  Getting to and from your motel is also your responsibility.  Any assistance with this is on an "as available" basis. 

At least once along the route, we invite local artists to provide us with entertainment, focussing on the flavour of the area.  In the past, we have had native story telling, old time bands, slide shows, a native pow wow, etc.  In addition to our mechanical and medical support, the tour provides massage therapy, and a photographer. 

If you have not been to these diverse regions of British Columbia before, you are in for a treat.  If you are returning for a 2^nd, 3rd or 11th time, we are sure we still have some surprises and discoveries for you.