CENTRAL BRITISH COLUMBIA - British Columbia: Including the Alaska Highway - page 553

Rooms in the main lodge are beautifully furnished, and each has a private bal-
cony, while the Honeymoon Cabin sits high above a deep ravine and has a wrap-
around deck complete with hot tub. Dining is ranch-style, at a couple of long tables
with plenty of interaction between guests. But the food is anything but chili and
beans.
As you'd expect, staying at Echo Valley isn't cheap ($320-650 pp per night in
high season), but it's a very special place that my wife and I hold dear memories of
from our own honeymoon.
Food
On the north side of town, Boneparte Bend Winery (2520 Hwy. N, 250/457-6667,
10am-5pm Mon.-Sat. 10am-4pm May-Sept., lunches $9-13) is a pleasant reprieve the from
the diners of downtown Cache Creek. Primarily a winery producing fruit wines, the facility
also has an inviting bistro open for lunch through summer, with a choice of plates to share
and deserts such as rhubarb raspberry pie.
LILLOOET
This historic town of 2,300 was founded as Mile Zero of the 1858 Cariboo Wagon
Road—also known as the Gold Rush Trail—which led north to the Barkerville and Wells
goldfields. Several towns along the Gold Rush Trail—70 Mile House, 100 Mile House, and
150 Mile House, among them—were named for their distance up the wagon road from Lil-
looet. With thousands of prospectors passing through in the mid-1800s, Lillooet was the
scene of its own gold rush. By this time the city held some 16,000 residents, making it the
second-largest population center north of San Francisco and west of Chicago. But as with
most other boomtowns, the population explosion was short-lived.
Sights and Recreation
A row of rusty farming relics out front marks Lillooet Museum (790 Main St., 250/
256-4308, 10am-4pm Tues.-Sat. May-Oct., 9am-5pm daily July-Aug., donation). Inside are
ore samples and details about the one-time boomtown's mining history and growth. With-
in the museum is the local visitor info center. After visiting here, saunter along wide Main
Street and pretend you're back in the Gold-Rush era—it won't be hard if you happen to be
here during the Apricot Festival. During this mid-July celebration, the town fills with vis-
itors who enjoy all sorts of entertaining events.