Old Suspension Bridge over Fraser River at Lillooet BC

Since the construction of the Bridge of the 23 Camels, this old span is know as "The Old Bridge" to people who live in this community. It was built in 1913 and is a suspension bridge or steel cables and wood with 'dead men' embedded in the rock banks of the river. The middle of the bridge is held up by cables. This bridge replaced a winch ferry that was powered by the river current and had been in use since 1860. In 2003 the District of Lillooet along with the Ministry of Transportation completed a restoration of the Old Bridge.

Lillooet is a historic gold rush town built on the banks of the Fraser River. The town, named for the Lil'wat First Nations people who live in the area, was on the original route for prospectors traveling to the Cariboo gold fields and Barkerville. The miners traveled from the coast on the Douglas Trial, along Harrison and Anderson Lakes, by paddle-wheeler and over rough cut trail, through to Lillooet where the Cariboo Wagon Road began. Lillooet was known as Mile 0 on the Cariboo Wagon Road and towns and roadhouses along the road to the goldfields were named by their distance from Lillooet. Many of these names, such as 100 Mile House, still remain today. As a main supply point along the Gold Rush Trail, Lillooet grew quickly and in 1860 was one of the largest cities in B.C. with a population of close to 15,000.

When the Royal Engineers built a new road through the Fraser Canyon and eventually connected with the Cariboo Wagon Road at Clinton, Lillooet and the Douglas Trail were bypassed. Although population declined, Lillooet continued to thrive on natural resource based industries. In recent years the tourism industry has grown as visitors discover the scenic beauty and unlimited recreational opportunities the area offers. Newly designated as the "scenic route" to the coast, Highway 99 runs from Cache Creek through Lillooet to Whistler and North Vancouver, offering travelers a spectacular all-season drive.