The Thompson River is the largest tributary of the Fraser River, flowing through the south-central portion of British Columbia, Canada. The Thompson River has two main branches, the South Thompson River and the North Thompson River. The river is home to several varieties of Pacific salmon and trout. The area's geological history was heavily influenced by glaciation, and the several large glacial lakes have filled the river valley over the last 12,000 years. Archaeological evidence shows human habitation in the watershed dating back at least 8,300 years. The Thompson was named by Fraser River explorer, Simon Fraser, in honour of his friend, Columbia Basin explorer David Thompson. Recreational use of the river includes whitewater rafting and angling.
Shuswap Lake is a lake located in the southern interior of British Columbia, Canada that drains via the Little Shuswap River into Little Shuswap Lake. Little Shuswap Lake is the source of the South Thompson River, a branch of the Thompson River, a tributary of the Fraser River. It is at the heart of a region known as the Columbia Shuswap or "the Shuswap", noted for its recreational lakeshore communities including the city of Salmon Arm. The name "Shuswap" is derived from the Shuswap or Secwepemc First Nations people, the most northern of the Interior Salish peoples, whose territory includes the Shuswap. The Shuswap call themselves /ʃǝxwépmǝx/ in their own language, which is called /ʃǝxwepmǝxtʃín/.
The City of Enderby is in the North Okanagan region of the Canadian province of British Columbia, between Armstrong and Salmon Arm. It is approximately 80 km north of Kelowna and 130 km east of Kamloops. Highway 97A passes through Enderby and the Shuswap River marks the eastern and northeastern limits of the City. There are two major schools in Enderby: M.V. Beattie Elementary School and A.L. Fortune Secondary School. M.V. Beattie Elementary School was rebuilt in 2012.
The Monashee Mountains are a mountain range lying mostly in British Columbia, Canada, extending into the U.S. state of Washington. They stretch 530 km (329 mi) from north to south and 150 km (93 mi) from east to west. They are a sub-range of the Columbia Mountains. The highest summit is Mount Monashee, which reaches 3,274 m (10,741 ft). The name is from the Scottish Gaelic monadh and sìth, meaning "moor" and "peace".
Adams Lake is a large, deep, coldwater lake in British Columbia, Canada; its average depth ranks 6th in the world. The southern end of the lake is approximately 30 km (19 mi) north of the town of Chase in the Shuswap Country region of British Columbia. The lake's upper reaches lie in the northern Monashee Mountains, while its lower end penetrates the Shuswap Highland. The lake supports Chinook, Sockeye and Coho salmon, Kokanee, mountain whitefish and rainbow trout.
Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc, abbreviated TteS and previously known as the Kamloops Indian Band, is a First Nations government within the Shuswap Nation Tribal Council, which represents ten of the seventeen Secwepemc band governments, all in the southern Central Interior region, spanning the Thompson and Shuswap districts. It is one of the largest of the 17 groups into which the Secwepemc (Shuswap) nation was divided when the Colony of British Columbia established an Indian reserve system in the 1860s.
Chase is a village located in the Interior of British Columbia, Canada. It has a population of roughly 3,124, and its main industries are forestry and tourism. It is located at the outlet of Little Shuswap Lake, which is the source of the South Thompson River. Chase Creek, which drops over three small waterfalls before flowing through the town, enters the South Thompson just below the lake's outlet.
The Secwépemc, known in English as the Shuswap people, are a First Nations people residing in the interior of the Canadian province of British Columbia. They speak one of the Salishan languages, known as Secwepemc or Shuswap.
The South Thompson River is the southern branch of the Thompson River, the largest tributary of the Fraser River, in the Canadian province of British Columbia. It originates at the outlet of Little Shuswap Lake at the town of Chase and flows approximately 58 kilometres (36 mi) southwest and west through a wide valley to Kamloops where it joins the North Thompson River to form the main stem Thompson River.
The British Columbia Interior, popularly referred to as the BC Interior or simply the Interior, is a geographic region of the Canadian province of British Columbia. While the exact boundaries are variously defined, the British Columbia Interior is generally defined to include the 14 regional districts that do not have coastline along the Pacific Ocean or Salish Sea, and are not part of the Lower Mainland. Other boundaries may exclude parts of or even entire regional districts, or expand the definition to include the regional districts of Fraser Valley, Squamish–Lillooet, and Kitimat–Stikine.
The Shuswap Nation Tribal Council is a First Nations Tribal Council in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Based in the Thompson and Shuswap Districts of the Central Interior, although including one band on the upper Columbia River in the East Kootenay region. It is one of two tribal councils of the Secwepemc people, the other being the Northern Shuswap Tribal Council of the Cariboo region farther to the north. The council is based in Kamloops, British Columbia.
The Nicola Athapaskans, also known as the Nicola people or Stuwix, were an Athabascan people who migrated into the Nicola Country of what is now the Southern Interior of British Columbia from the north a few centuries ago but were slowly reduced in number by constant raiding from peoples from outside the valley, with the survivors, the last of whom lived near Nicola Lake, assimilated to the Scw'exmx-Syilx Nicola people by the end of the 19th century. The term Nicola for them is a misnomer, though a common one used by ethnologists and linguists - it commemorates a famous Okanagan chief who once held sway over the valley and its peoples as well as over the Kamloops Shuswap).
The Robson Valley is a geographic region of the Canadian province of British Columbia, comprising the section of the Rocky Mountain Trench that lies southeast of the city of Prince George following the Fraser River to the Yellowhead Pass. The name is derived from Mount Robson, which stands near the entrance to the Yellowhead Pass. Communities in the Robson Valley include the settlements of Dome Creek, Crescent Spur, Dunster, and Tête Jaune Cache, with larger population concentrations in the villages of McBride and Valemount. On a map, the Robson Valley is located immediately south of the elbow in the boundary between Alberta and British Columbia. Transportation corridors through the Robson Valley include the Canadian National Railway lines, and Highways 16 and 5.
The Okanagan Country, also known as the Okanagan Valley, is a region located in the Canadian province of British Columbia and the U.S. state of Washington, defined by the basin of Okanagan Lake and the Okanagan River. With an estimated 400,000 residents, the Okanagan Country spans from the Thompson Plateau near Grindrod, British Columbia in the Okanagan to the Okanagan Highland near Douglas County, Washington in the Okanogan. The largest city in the Canadian portion is Kelowna, with a metropolitan population of 194,882 residents as of 2016, while the largest city in the American portion is Omak, with 4,881 residents as of 2011. The region took its current name in honor of the Okanagan term, ukʷnaqín. The mild climate and close proximity to lakes, rivers and mountainous regions make the Okanagan Country an outdoor recreational destination. The region's economy is dominated by the primary sector industries of agriculture and forestry, although economic diversification has also occurred with retirement communities and recreational tourism. The American portion is considered to be more remote than the Canadian division, with approximately 10 percent of the population.
Thompson Country, also referred to as The Thompson and sometimes as the Thompson Valley and historically known as the Couteau Country or Couteau District, is a historic geographic region of the Southern Interior of British Columbia, more or less defined by the basin of the Thompson River. This is a tributary of the Fraser; the major city in the area is Kamloops.
The Nicola Country, also known as the Nicola Valley and often referred to simply as The Nicola, and originally Nicolas' Country or Nicholas' Country, adapted to Nicola's Country and simplified since, is a region in the Southern Interior of British Columbia, Canada. It is the main subregion of the larger Thompson Country and is often referred to separately, or in combination forms, notably the Thompson-Nicola Regional District. The combination Nicola-Similkameen is also common.
The Little River, also known as the Little Shuswap River, is a 3.6-kilometre (2.2 mi) river in the Shuswap Country region of British Columbia, Canada. It drains Shuswap Lake just below the mouth of the Adams River and feeds Little Shuswap Lake, which is the head of the South Thompson River. The Little River is essentially the same stream as the South Thompson, as there are no other major streams feeding Little Shuswap Lake. The river is spanned by Squilax Bridge which connects the Trans-Canada Highway to the communities around Adams Lake and the north shore of Shuswap Lake.
Botanie Mountain, also spelled Bootahnie Mountain, is a mountain in the Clear Range of the Southern Interior of British Columbia, Canada. It is located immediately north of the village of Lytton, which is situated at the confluence of the Thompson and Fraser Rivers.
The Adams River is a tributary to the Thompson and Fraser Rivers in British Columbia, Canada. Beginning in the Monashee Mountains to the north, the Upper Adams River flows mainly southward and eventually reaches Adams Lake. The Lower Adams River begins at the southern end of the lake and flows into the extreme western end of Shuswap Lake. The river is one of the most important sockeye salmon breeding areas in North America. The run occurs in mid-October and can bring millions of fish to a concentrated area near the river mouth. Excavations of Secwepemc villages on the river have shown a long tradition of habitation and salmon fishing in the area. The river also served as an important transportation route for early logging operations in the watershed.
The Simpcw First Nation, formerly known as the North Thompson Indian Band, is a First Nations band government based in the Thompson Country of British Columbia, Canada. It is a member of the Shuswap Nation Tribal Council. It is a First Nations government of the Secwepemc (Shuswap) Nation, located in the Central Interior region of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The band's main community is at Chu Chua, British Columbia. Four of the five First Nation Reserves in Simpcw territory were designated on July 5, 1877 and the fifth was designated on February 24, 1916. The Shuswap language name for North Thompson Band's community and reserve is 'Simpcw'.
