FORT ST. JAMES NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE

When I first heard we were driving up to Fort St. James on our 3-month-long journey through northern BC & the Yukon, I was skeptical.  We’d just passed through a couple of other ‘Forts’ … Fort Nelson and Fort St. John.  Both left me underwhelmed as they were simply small, rough, rural towns which I’m sure are great for people living there … but they don’t offer a lot of interesting ‘tourist’ stuff.  But after we visited Fort St. James, I was very happy that we took the time to check out this particular Fort.

Managers House – Fort St. James National Historic Site

Just west of Vanderhoof and about 62km north on Hwy #27, you’ll come to the town of Fort St. James.  Follow the highway to the end – or follow the signs – it’s easy to find Admission is approx. $8 for adults and $4 for children.*

Company Store

The company store

First Nations Interpreter

The site is a restored Hudson’s Bay Co. post established by Simon Fraser in 1806.  The site has numerous restored buildings from the original fort and costumed interpreters will engage you with tales of life in the wilderness in the early 1800’s.  You can easily spend 2 – 3 hours there and there’s lots of stuff that even the kids will enjoy!

Warehouse at Fort St. James National Historic Site

Fur shed

The fur shed

The drive up there is a beautiful one and the payoff at the end is WELL worth the side trip!  Do yourself a favor and take in this amazing and informative site – you’ll be glad you did!

Please check out their website for more information: Fort St. James National Historic Site

*A good way to save some $$ is to pick up the ‘Golden Raven’ newsletter & coupons at other National Historic Sites, such as Valemount Museum, Huble Historic Homesite, Barkerville & others as there was a 2/1 coupon for this site!