Two days later we were back on the bus to Likely. This time we drove out to Keithley Creek, site of another gold strike. Here we drove by a giant pile of rocks that Chinese miners removed from the Creek to search for gold. There's also a historic cemetery and the Keithley Creek library (a shed full of donated books)
Checking out Keithley Creek Cemetery
We also stopped in to visit Ethyl Winger, the former mayor of Williams Lake who grew up in Keithley Creek and still spends all summer in her cabin.
Back to Likely for lunch at the Likely Hotel, and then down to Quesnel Forks, once the largest city in BC.
Lovely Fall Day in Quesnel Forks
Most of the town was washd away by the Quesnel River, and only the Chinese settlement remains. In 1996 our kayaking friends were camped at the Forks and were wakened in the night by a the loud sounds of a landslide. They woke up in the morning to find that the high bank across the river had collapsed and entirely blocked off the flow.
When the blockage washed out the river was pushed over to the townsite and began to erode away the bank. Several of the remaining buildings were washed away but the Tong House was saved and relocated away from the bank.
We paddle the Cariboo River several times a year (not this year though, too much smoke for outdoor activities), and we take out at Quesnel Forks where the Cariboo joins the Quesnel River. But I haven't actually walked through the townsite in the last 10 years. Back then the buildings were in pretty rough shape. Most of their roofs had caved in. But in the intervening years they've gotten grants and reconstructed many of the buildings.
They've put up interpretive signs and we were given a handout describing all the buildings.
Another great Cariboo History tour! Thanks to the Elders College and our guide, history buff and retired educator, Barry Sale.
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