Gun Lake (British Columbia)
Encyclopedia
Gun Lake, often spelled Gunn Lake and also known as Big Gun Lake, is a lake
and unincorporated community in the Bridge River Country
of the West-Central Interior of British Columbia
, Canada
, located 5 miles northwest of the community of Gold Bridge
. It is approximately 10 km in length and is roughly pistol-shaped when seen from above, and drains via a short connecting creek to Gun Creek, which is an important tributary of the Bridge River
, joining it via Carpenter Lake
. Lajoie Lake
, which is just southwest, is also known as Little Gun Lake and is also a small community. The two together are generally referred to as the Gun Lakes.
"Big Gun" has a summer population around 100 and has a full-time population of approx 20 people and constitutes one of the main communities of the Bridge River Valley, the others being Gold Bridge and the mining ghost town
of Bralorne, and a smaller recreational community in the area of Tyaughton Lake
and Gun Creek Road, which runs west from that lake on the north flank of Gun Creek.
According to a newspaper article from 1941 written by an early prospector and currently posted in an old mining cabin in Bralorne, Gun Lake and Gun Creek were named because a prospector once lost his Gun in Gun Creek.
Lake
A lake is a body of relatively still fresh or salt water of considerable size, localized in a basin, that is surrounded by land. Lakes are inland and not part of the ocean and therefore are distinct from lagoons, and are larger and deeper than ponds. Lakes can be contrasted with rivers or streams,...
and unincorporated community in the Bridge River Country
Bridge River Country
The Bridge River Country is a historic geographic region and mining district in the Interior of British Columbia, Canada, lying between the Fraser Canyon and the valley of the Lillooet River, south of the Chilcotin Plateau and north of the Lillooet Ranges...
of the West-Central Interior of British Columbia
British Columbia Interior
The British Columbia Interior or BC Interior or Interior of British Columbia, usually referred to only as the Interior, is one of the three main regions of the Canadian province of British Columbia, the other two being the Lower Mainland, which comprises the overlapping areas of Greater Vancouver...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, located 5 miles northwest of the community of Gold Bridge
Gold Bridge, British Columbia
Gold Bridge is an unincorporated community in the Bridge River Country of British Columbia, Canada. Although numbering only around 250 inhabitants, Gold Bridge is the service and supply centre for the upper basin of the Bridge River Valley, which includes recreation-residential areas at the Gun...
. It is approximately 10 km in length and is roughly pistol-shaped when seen from above, and drains via a short connecting creek to Gun Creek, which is an important tributary of the Bridge River
Bridge River
The Bridge River is, or was, a major tributary of British Columbia's Fraser River, entering that stream about six miles upstream from the town of Lillooet.-Name:Its name in the Lillooet language is Xwisten , sometimes spelled Nxwisten or Nxo-isten)...
, joining it via Carpenter Lake
Carpenter Lake
Carpenter Lake, officially Carpenter Lake Reservoir, is the largest of the three reservoirs of the Bridge River Power Project, which is located in the mountains west of Lillooet, British Columbia...
. Lajoie Lake
Lajoie Lake
Lajoie Lake, also known as Little Gun Lake, is a small lake in the Bridge River Country of the West-Central Interior of British Columbia, Canada, located three miles west of the community of Gold Bridge and just southwest of Gun Lake, which is also known as Big Gun Lake...
, which is just southwest, is also known as Little Gun Lake and is also a small community. The two together are generally referred to as the Gun Lakes.
"Big Gun" has a summer population around 100 and has a full-time population of approx 20 people and constitutes one of the main communities of the Bridge River Valley, the others being Gold Bridge and the mining ghost town
Ghost town
A ghost town is an abandoned town or city. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economic activity that supported it has failed, or due to natural or human-caused disasters such as floods, government actions, uncontrolled lawlessness, war, or nuclear disasters...
of Bralorne, and a smaller recreational community in the area of Tyaughton Lake
Tyaughton Lake
Tyaughton Lake, also known as Tyoax Lake or Tyax Lake, is a lake in the Bridge River Country of the West-Central Interior of British Columbia, Canada, located to the north of Carpenter Lake, a reservoir along the Bridge River formed by Terzaghi Dam of the Bridge River Power Project...
and Gun Creek Road, which runs west from that lake on the north flank of Gun Creek.
According to a newspaper article from 1941 written by an early prospector and currently posted in an old mining cabin in Bralorne, Gun Lake and Gun Creek were named because a prospector once lost his Gun in Gun Creek.