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Circle Tour - From East to West
Anahim Lake
All roads except for Highway 20 are
gravel. You should be sure to check on local conditions before
embarking on your trip.
The community of Anahim Lake is almost exactly 200 miles or
320km out of Williams Lake and is often called the Gateway
to Tweedsmuir. It consists of two restaurants, three stores
and gas stations, two churches, a small motel, medical clinic,
Highway works yard, school and RCMP Detachment Office, as
well as several home based businesses. There is a large Native
Reserve in the community itself as well as along the highway
just east of Anahim Lake.
A 5000 ft. paved runway allows scheduled flights from Vancouver
South Terminal once a day in winter and twice in summer.
Anahim Lake is a popular lake for Rainbow Trout to 14"
and up to three pounds. The lake has three resorts on it that
provide camping as well as excellent accommodation varying
from chalets and cabins to B&B's, family fare on licensed
premises to fine dining with lake and mountain views. It's
a popular lake for boating, swimming, canoeing, kayaking and
float tubing.
The Dean River exits Anahim Lake and meanders its way north
and then west, growing along the way. It is a world renowned
fly fishing river for Rainbow Trout on the upper Dean, and
for Steelhead on the lower Dean. Follow Christiansen Road
to the north where you can access the Dean from some spots
along the road. Also along this gravel road are several good
fishing lakes which includes Abundtlet where fishing is excellent
for Rainbow Trout to three pounds where the Dean exits the.
Continue north on the road to Lessard Lake beyond that on
the right. Lessard has little pressure on its wild Char and
Rainbow Trout stocks in excess of four pounds and its shallow
depth makes it an extremely popular and consistant fly fishing
lake.
Other lakes can be accessed by road from the community of
Anahim Lake which includes Kappan Lake as well as several
smaller lakes in the area.
Anahim Lake is a great recreational center with Tweedsmuir
Park to its west and the Itcha Illgatchuz Park to its east.
Tweedsmuir offers tremendous opportunity to hike the many
trails throughout the park, or pick your own up into the Rainbow
Mountains with their spectacular color created by minerals.
Hike the Tote Road at the bottom of the Bella Coola Hill into
Hunlen Falls, the third highest freefalling waterfall in Canada.
Trail riding, pack trips, and horse assisted hiking trips
are popular in both the Rainbow Mountains and the Itcha Illgatchuz
Ranges. Here you'll see numerous and varied wildlife, high
elevation lakes and wild alpine that supports lichen and swales
of wildflowers.
The Anahim Lake area has tremendous mountain views including
that of Anahim Peak, famous for its good quality obsidian
traded for centuries by local natives to other tribes across
Western Canada and the United States. The community is also
noted for its events that include a canoe race on the Dean
River in the spring, waterskipping with snowmobiles in early
summer, and the Anahim Lake Stampede in mid-July. The region
has a long history of first trapping, and than ranching, and
has found its place in many legends as well as books.
Anahim Lake is the last community before heading west down
the infamous 'Hill' at Heckman Pass to the Bella Coola Valley.
For more detailed information and images of Anahim Lake please
go to the Tour
Anahim Lake Region page.
Operators - Anahim Lake
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