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The Chilcotin () region of
British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...
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 British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...
on the inland lee of the
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 British Columbia Coast, Coast of British Columbia sout ...
on the west side of the
Fraser River The Fraser River () is the longest river within British Columbia, Canada, rising at Fraser Pass near Blackrock Mountain (Canada), Blackrock Mountain in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for , into the Strait of Georgia just south of the City of V ...
. Chilcotin is also the name of the river draining that region. In the language of the Tsilhqot'in people, their name and the name of the river means "those of the red ochre river" (its tributary the
Chilko River The Chilko River is a river in the Chilcotin District of the Central Interior of British Columbia, Canada, flowing northeast from Chilko Lake to the Chilcotin River. Its main tributary is the Taseko River. The Chilko is the Chilcotin River's ...
means "red ochre river"). The proper name of the Chilcotin Country, or
Tsilhqotʼin The Tsilhqotin or Chilcotin ("People of the river", ; also spelled ''Tsilhqutin, Tŝinlhqotin, Chilkhodin, Tsilkótin, Tsilkotin'') are a First Nations in Canada, North American tribal government of the Northern Athabaskan languages, Athabask ...
territory, in their language is Tŝilhqotʼin Nen. The Chilcotin district is often viewed as an extension of the
Cariboo The Cariboo is an intermontane region of British Columbia, Canada, centered on a plateau stretching from Fraser Canyon to the Cariboo Mountains. The name is a reference to the Caribou (North America), caribou that were once abundant in the reg ...
region, east of that river, although it has a distinct identity from the Cariboo District. It is, nonetheless, part of the
Cariboo Regional District The Cariboo Regional District spans the Cities and Districts of Quesnel, Williams Lake, 100 Mile House, and Wells in the Central Interior of British Columbia. Geography The Cariboo Regional District (CRD) in the Central Interior of BC enc ...
which is a municipal-level body governing some aspects of infrastructure and land-used planning. The vast majority of the population are
First Nations First nations are indigenous settlers or bands. First Nations, first nations, or first peoples may also refer to: Indigenous groups *List of Indigenous peoples *First Nations in Canada, Indigenous peoples of Canada who are neither Inuit nor Mé ...
people, members of the Tsilhqot'in and
Dakelh The Dakelh (pronounced ) or Carrier are a First Nations in Canada, First Nations Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous people living a large portion of the British Columbia Interior, Central Interior of British Columbia, Canada. The Dakel ...
peoples, while others are settlers and ranchers.


Geography

The Chilcotin district is mostly a wide, high plateau, stretching from the mountains to the
Fraser River The Fraser River () is the longest river within British Columbia, Canada, rising at Fraser Pass near Blackrock Mountain (Canada), Blackrock Mountain in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for , into the Strait of Georgia just south of the City of V ...
, but also includes several fjord-like lakes which verge from the plateau into the base of the mountains. The largest of the lakes in the region is Chilko Lake, which feeds the
Chilko River The Chilko River is a river in the Chilcotin District of the Central Interior of British Columbia, Canada, flowing northeast from Chilko Lake to the Chilcotin River. Its main tributary is the Taseko River. The Chilko is the Chilcotin River's ...
, the main tributary of the
Chilcotin River The Chilcotin River /tʃɪlˈkoʊtɪn/ located in Southern British Columbia, Canada is a long tributary of the Fraser River. The name Chilcotin comes from Tŝilhqot’in, meaning "ochre river people," where ochre refers to the mineral used by ...
. Other major lakes are Tatlayoko Lake ( ) and Taseko Lake ( ); the area of the lakes, in the southern part of the district, is now the Tsʼilʔos Provincial Park, also known as the Xeni Gwetʼin Wilderness after the Xeni Gwetʼin, the local subdivision of the Tsilhqotʼin people) and are also known as the Stony Chilcotin, who were also instrumental in the campaign for that area's preservation. The forested plateau area just northeast of the park, between the Chilko River and Taseko Rivers, is known as the Brittany Triangle and is currently under hot dispute between preservationists and logging interests. East of the Tsʼilʔos Provincial Park is Big Creek Provincial Park and the Churn Creek Protected Area, while to the southeast is the Spruce Lake Protected Area aka "the South Chilcotin", which despite its nickname is mostly in the
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 Lillo ...
, part of the
Lillooet Country The Lillooet Country, also referred to as the Lillooet District, is a region spanning from the central Fraser Canyon town of Lillooet west to the valley of the Lillooet River, and including the valleys in between, in the Southern Interior of Bri ...
and not part of the Chilcotin Country, which begins at the protected area's northern and northwestern borders.


Literary contributions

Despite its small population and isolation, the region has produced a small but very readable literature mixing naturalism with native and settler cultures and memoirs. The most well-known Chilcotin authors are Leland Stowe and Paul St. Pierre; the latter was formerly Member of Parliament for Coast Chilcotin and a noted
Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...
journalist. St. Pierre's writing encapsulated Chilcotin folklore and daily life and are written in a crisp, ironic and often humorous style; the best-known is ''Smith and Other Events'' and ''Cariboo Cowboy'', while Stowe's writings focus on the wildlife of the area on the western rim of the district, adjacent to Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park. His ''Crusoe of Lonesome Lake'' is about early settler
Ralph Edwards Ralph Livingstone Edwards (June 13, 1913DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . Pp. 86-87. – November 16, 2005) was an American radio ...
and his work protecting the
trumpeter swan The trumpeter swan (''Cygnus buccinator'') is a species of swan found in North America. The heaviest living bird native to North America, it is also the largest extant species of waterfowl, with a wingspan of 185 to 304.8 cm (6 ft 2 in ...
s which migrate through the region; Edwards' own volume ''Ralph Edwards of Lonesome Lake'' parallels Stowe's account, and the book ''Ruffles On My Longjohns'' by his sister-in-law Isabel Edwards documents her tribulations as the wilderness wife of a wildlife advocate. Another notable book from more recent times are ''Chiwid'' by Sage Birchwater of Tatlayoko Lake, documenting eyewitness reminiscences of a
First Nations First nations are indigenous settlers or bands. First Nations, first nations, or first peoples may also refer to: Indigenous groups *List of Indigenous peoples *First Nations in Canada, Indigenous peoples of Canada who are neither Inuit nor Mé ...
eccentric-cum-spirit person, Lilly Skinner, and ''Nemaia: the Unconquered Country'' by Terry Glavin, which recounts the story of the Chilcotin War of 1864 and the flavour of the Nemaia Valley today (the Nemaia is the main residence of the Xeni Gwetin, who were the main instigators of the war). Edwards's cabin, and the trumpeter habitat, are world heritage sites although his cabin was burned out in large forest fires in the summer of 2004. Another Chilcotin author is Ted "Chilco" Choate, a hunting guide at Gaspard Lake in the southeastern part of the district who writes about animals, hunters and the wilderness lifestyle. Choate is one of the main advocates for combining the Tweedsmuir, Tsʼilʔos, Spruce Lake/South Chilcotin, Big Creek and Churn Creek wilderness areas into one large national park spanning the
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 British Columbia Coast, Coast of British Columbia sout ...
and plateau between the
Fraser Fraser may refer to: Places Antarctica * Fraser Point, South Orkney Islands Australia * Fraser, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb in the Canberra district of Belconnen * Division of Fraser (Australian Capital Territory), a former federal ...
and the spine of the
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 British Columbia Coast, Coast of British Columbia sout ...
.


Wild horses

The Chilcotin is also known for its large population of mustang horses, which have contributed to the bloodlines of domesticated horses in the regions, including a variety known as the cayuse pony or, in some local spellings, cayoosh (the old name for the town of
Lillooet Lillooet () is a district municipality in the Squamish-Lillooet region of southwestern British Columbia. The town is on the west shore of the Fraser River immediately north of the Seton River mouth. On BC Highway 99, the locality is by road abo ...
), which lies just outside the Chilcotin to the southeast, near where the plateau meets the
Fraser River The Fraser River () is the longest river within British Columbia, Canada, rising at Fraser Pass near Blackrock Mountain (Canada), Blackrock Mountain in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for , into the Strait of Georgia just south of the City of V ...
. Still "controlled" today due to their competition for forage with cattle herds, they were once so overpopulated — even before put into competition with the feed demands of large-scale ranching — that a high bounty was set on them and they were hunted out, and nearly exterminated. They are believed to be stock brought in during gold rush times, as according to contemporary records the Chilcotins did not have horses until then. Author and guide-outfitter Chilco Choate, however, points out that forage patterns and the adaptation of the breed to the area, it is more likely that they entered the area, already wild prior to domestication by local natives and being perhaps offshoots of the large horseherds acquired by the
Okanagan The Okanagan ( ), also called the Okanagan Valley and sometimes the Okanagan Country, is a region in the Canadian province of British Columbia defined by the basin of Okanagan Lake and the Canadian portion of the Okanagan River. It is part of ...
and
Nez Perce The Nez Perce (; autonym in Nez Perce language: , meaning 'we, the people') are an Indigenous people of the Plateau who still live on a fraction of the lands on the southeastern Columbia River Plateau in the Pacific Northwest. This region h ...
and other plateau peoples several decades before. Despite their controlled status, their population survives today, though imperilled by expansion of ranching and logging. The area is accessed by Highway 20, which runs from the port town of Bella Coola, at the head of South Bentinck Arm, a coastal
fjord In physical geography, a fjord (also spelled fiord in New Zealand English; ) is a long, narrow sea inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Antarctica, the Arctic, and surrounding landmasses of the n ...
piercing into the heart of the
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 British Columbia Coast, Coast of British Columbia sout ...
, across the mountains and plateau to the city of Williams Lake, the principal town of the south
Cariboo The Cariboo is an intermontane region of British Columbia, Canada, centered on a plateau stretching from Fraser Canyon to the Cariboo Mountains. The name is a reference to the Caribou (North America), caribou that were once abundant in the reg ...
. Near Highway 20 in the southern end of Tweedsmuir Park is Hunlen Falls, at 1226 feet (373.7 m) one of Canada's highest, plunging into a deep canyon that makes measurement difficult.


Settlements and towns

The largest towns in the Chilcotin are Alexis Creek, Anahim Lake and Hanceville, which are all First Nations communities. Other communities in the Chilcotin are Towdystan, Nimpo Lake, Nemaiah Valley, Tatla Lake, and Tatlayoko Lake, though settlers (usually small ranchers and owners and staff of small resorts) are scattered across the backcountry. There is a Canadian Forces artillery and tactics range on the eastern edge of the plateau, in the vicinity of old Fort Chilcotin (this land was originally set aside for military purposes following the Chilcotin War).


The Gang Ranch

Also of major importance in the Chilcotin is the Gang Ranch, once the world's largest and still among the major beef suppliers in
British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...
. "The Gang" dates from the 1860s and covers nearly all terrain south of the
Chilcotin River The Chilcotin River /tʃɪlˈkoʊtɪn/ located in Southern British Columbia, Canada is a long tributary of the Fraser River. The name Chilcotin comes from Tŝilhqot’in, meaning "ochre river people," where ochre refers to the mineral used by ...
and east of Taseko Lake and the
Fraser River The Fraser River () is the longest river within British Columbia, Canada, rising at Fraser Pass near Blackrock Mountain (Canada), Blackrock Mountain in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for , into the Strait of Georgia just south of the City of V ...
, and skirting the
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 Lillo ...
to its south. The vast terrain of the Gang Ranch is more wilderness than pasture, with natural plateau and alpine meadowland and vast forests and swamps. The Gang verges up into the foothill area of the northeastern flank of the
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 British Columbia Coast, Coast of British Columbia sout ...
as they approach the
Fraser River The Fraser River () is the longest river within British Columbia, Canada, rising at Fraser Pass near Blackrock Mountain (Canada), Blackrock Mountain in the Rocky Mountains and flowing for , into the Strait of Georgia just south of the City of V ...
from the west, meeting the
Fraser Fraser may refer to: Places Antarctica * Fraser Point, South Orkney Islands Australia * Fraser, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb in the Canberra district of Belconnen * Division of Fraser (Australian Capital Territory), a former federal ...
between the Gang Ranch's main house and the town of
Lillooet Lillooet () is a district municipality in the Squamish-Lillooet region of southwestern British Columbia. The town is on the west shore of the Fraser River immediately north of the Seton River mouth. On BC Highway 99, the locality is by road abo ...
. Similar ranching conditions are found from the
Burns Lake Burns Lake is a rural village in the British Columbia Interior, north-western-central interior of British Columbia, Canada, incorporated in 1923. The village had a population of 1,659 as of the 2021 Census. The village is known for its rich F ...
and Smithers area in northwestern Interior BC all the way south to the US border, including the famous Douglas Lake Ranch south of
Kamloops Kamloops ( ) is a city in south-central British Columbia, Canada, at the confluence of the North Thompson River, North and South Thompson Rivers, which join to become the Thompson River in Kamloops, and east of Kamloops Lake. The city is the ad ...
, but the Gang is by far the largest, and the most wild in character.


References


"Chilcotin country" usages in Google Books


External links

{{Subdivisions of British Columbia, regions=yes