The history of our town goes back tens of thousands of years. The area was original settled by the people of the Stó:lô first nation. There name in the Halqemeylem language means river, as they settled along the banks of what is now known as the Fraser and Coquihalla rivers. These people or the river were primarily a hunter gatherer community. Even today they contribute to the colourful tapestry that is our town.

In 1808 Simon Fraser and other white European explorers arrived in the area. By 1848, the Hudson's Bay Comapny established the Fort Hope Trading Post.

Throughout the gold rush era and even to today, Hope has acted a major junction point for travelers to and from the coast and the lush Fraser Valley to the rest of British Columbia and Canada. It sits at the base of the Coquihalla mountains and is where the Trans-Canada Highway (Highway 1), the Coquihalla Highway (Highway 5), and the Crow's Nest Highway (Highway 3) meet up. Today it is a stop off point to fill up the tank, grab a coffee or a snack, and most importantly, see the town.

Some of our cool attractions:

• Our rich First Nations history
• We are the chainsaw carving capitol of the world
• The film Rambo First Blood was filmed here and you can take a walking tour of sites seen in the film
• Climb Mount Hope
• Walk along the river on the Rotary Trail
• Have fun relaxing with a picnic in Memorial Park
• Work out at our rec centre
• Shop downtown