Hope

Hope is well known for its hospitality and those who know always take the chance to stop and enjoy the vibrant community.

Hope is at the confluence of Fraser and Coquihalla rivers making it a gateway to BC’s most diverse scenery. It is located against the coast and cascade of the mountains which is a beautiful 90 minute drive from Vancouver. At Hope, one can enjoy hiking, fishing, flightseeing while those who love nature can enjoy the chainsaw carvings from its history of loggings and festivals by gold rush pioneers. There are also several parks, rivers and pathways in and around Hope to enjoy more of its history and wildlife.

There are unique activities to engage in at Hope some include an indulgence in arts and culture. At Hope there are chainsaw wood carving competitions, the Hope arts gallery and the Hope Brigade Days. Those who prefer the attraction there is the Hope museum, Hope Recreation Complex, the Hope slide site (largest landslide ever recorded in Canada), Memorial park, Friendship garden and the Othello Tunnels that give a spectacular view of the Coquihalla river. There are many curling enthusiasts at Hope and they converge at the Hope Curling Club while those who prefer golf can enjoy the course and club just on the banks of Coquihalla river giving a spectacular backdrop.

Hope is also home to Hope Icebreaker Junior hockey club who moved to Mission, BC after approval by British Columbia hockey. During winter there is skiing at Manning park. Many at Hope also enjoy fishing, boating and bike trails up the nearby mountains.

Hope traces back thousands of years to the First nations settlement dating back 8,000 to 10,000 years back. Europeans started settling into the area by 1808 with a trading post being set up in 1858 by the Hudson’s Bay Company. Hope joined the colony of British Columbia with the newly created British colony in 1858 and part of larger Canada in 1871. In 1859, Reverend Alexander St. David Francis Pringle arrived setting up the first library in BC and in 1861 started the oldest church on BC mainland in the area which is Christ Church. Hope became a village in 1929, become a town in 1965 and was reincorporated as the District of Hope on December 7th, 1992.