thanks for joining today we're on the road and going to explore the
colorful community of spences bridge spences bridge is a small town with a
population of only about 100 residents but back in the 1800s it was an important hub
for prospectors traveling to take part in the caribou gold rush let's go and explore
take part in the caribou gold rush one of them was mortimer cook who learned that he
could earn a tidy profit by helping travelers cross the river he rigged up a cable ferry able
to shuttle teams of oxen and supplies across the waters realizing the importance of the
crossing the colonial government granted thomas spence permission to build a bridge
work began in the fall of 1863 and was completed by spring 1864 but it didn't last long either as
the structure was washed away that same year thanks to an extremely high runoff
from the heavy spring thaw the government commissioned spence to build another bridge
which was finished in march of 1865 and after its completion the area became known as spences bridge
travelers were required to pay a toll to cross with foot passengers and horses charged 25 cents
stage coaches 1.50 and freight wagons 2 dollars after 67 years in operation the
bridge came to an end when the province deemed that a new bridge was required a third bridge
was constructed out of steel and cement and that structure remained in use for the next 84
years once it reached end of life the community rallied to save the bridge to use as a walkway but
unfortunately the structure is deemed unsound and finally dismantled in the spring of 2015
today there's a peaceful viewing area overlooking the water where the bridge once stood
the cement pillars can still be seen in the river and are a
reminder of the history that built this community
journeying further into town will pass by the bates motel the name is a playful take on the
classic alfred hitchcock film however the bates motel is actually a popular destination for
anglers looking to take advantage of the plentiful fishing in the area steelhead of up to 30 pounds
can be found in the local waters between october and december and the rest of the year the rivers
are full of trout chinook and in the fall bright red sockeye salmon famous author ernest hemingway
and other celebrities were known to visit the town for the outstanding fishing during its heyday
right next door is the packing house restaurant this building was the original fruit packing house
which belonged to a remarkable pioneer woman known as widow smith in 1887 the smiths moved
to spencer's bridge and purchased a neglected apple orchard john smith passed away in 1905
due to complications from a former mining accident undeterred the widow smith took over management of
the 3000 tree orchard which produced 37 different varieties of apples and won top honors in many
international exhibitions they even received the attention of king edward vii in the 1909
london horticultural society exhibition who requested to be shown the golden grimes apples
of the widow smith of spences bridge bc she continued to manage the ranch until her passing
at 93 years old and ended up being buried on the orchard grounds where she still rests today
further along the road this church is one of a group of anglican churches in the southern
interior of british columbia built around 1905 it replaced an earlier church that was destroyed by a
horrific landslide which also wiped out the first nations village that sat on the side of the river
this beautiful church sits abandoned but is a familiar landmark at the gateway to spences bridge
finally we're stopping for the night at the inn at spences bridge this property has a
story all its own and i'll include a link if you're interested in finding out more
thanks for joining us today remember to hit subscribe so you can stay up to date on all
our latest adventures and until next time it's time to exit through the gift shop