Tete Jaune Cache

Tete Jaune Cache is a village of about 500 people in the Robson Valley of Northern British Columbia. There are a couple of small provincial parks nearby and it's a good spot to see salmon spawning when the Chinook travel up the Fraser River in August.

History
Tête Jaune Cache is located on the traditional territories of the Lheidli T'enneh and Secwepemc First Nations. French voyageurs nicknamed the area Tête Jaune (French for yellow head) after a Métis fur trader, guide and trapper named Pierre Bostonais because of his blonde hair. There is evidence of established villages of tents and pit houses on the banks of the Fraser in this area rich in salmon and wild berries. The townsite land of Tête Jaune Cache was officially located in 1901 and crown-granted (patented) in 1902. During the construction of the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway, Tête Jaune Cache was a prosperous community and was the head of navigation for the paddle steamers of Foley, Welch and Stewart and the BC Express Company. The town was a booming collection of lumber shacks, tents, and log houses which brought thousands of pioneers, trappers, prospectors, foresters, and entrepreneurs to the Robson Valley. Major industries in historic Tête Jaune were timber, railways, steamship trade, and mining, especially for the locally abundant mica. Some of the largest and cleanest sheets of mica extracted in the era of its highest demand (for its usage in lanterns and stoves) came from this region, and the remains of one such mine can still be found on the popular Mica Mountain hiking trail. The pool halls, theatres, restaurants, jewellers, lady barbers, saloons, and trading posts are no more, with only a few stone chimneys remaining as evidence of this bustling town's existence, but the Valley Museum and Archives in McBride and the Valemount Historical Society maintain an excellent collection of photographs from the heyday of this boom town, c. 1910-1918. The area under the aegis of Tête Jaune Cache is home to Hauer Brothers' Sawmill, and a few small businesses specializing in custom timber milling, woodworking, guided flyfishing, whitewater rafting, snowcat skiing, and bed and breakfast accommodation.

In August 1916, the Simpcw people of the Tête Jaune Cache were forcibly relocated out of the area to Chu Chua and other places. The people were made to travel the 300 km by foot. The people of the Simpcw First Nation have made applications to the government to have lands at Tête Jaune Cache formally recognized. The Lheidli T'enneh First Nation also negotiated unratified land claims to the area with the government which which was frequented and inhabited by members who lived, travelled and traded over Dzulhcho (the Rocky Mountains) through the grease trails and along the waters as Dakelh (people who travel by boat/water). The Lhtakoh (Fraser River) is the main historical travelling route for the Lheidli T'enneh.

By car
The village is just south of the junction between Highway 5 (South Yellowhead Highway) and Highway 16 (Yellowhead Highway). Highway 16 is the main branch and Highway 5 is the southern branch. Highway 5 travels northeast, terminating at Tete Jaune Cache. Highway 16 travels east and west of Tete Jaune Cache. To Tete Jaune Cache it is roughly 3½ hours (330 km) north of Kamloops on Highway 5, roughly one hour's drive (100 km) west of Jasper on Highway 16, and roughly 3 hours (240 km) east of Prince George on Highway 16.

Go next

 * East on BC Highway 16 are two spectacular Rocky Mountains parks — Mount Robson Provincial Park (10-15 minute drive) and Jasper and Jasper National Park (1 hr drive). Both parks have plenty of hiking, camping and some stunning scenery.
 * West on BC Highway 16 is McBride and Prince George, the largest city in northern British Columbia.
 * A short distance south on BC Highway 5 is Valemount. Further south is Wells Gray Provincial Park, which is noted for its many waterfalls, and the city of Kamloops.