Experience
the history of
the west while
exploring the
Yellowhead
Highway
T
hough it’s only officially been open
since 1970, when you drive along the
Yellowhead Highway, you’re driving
along a road paved with hundreds of
years of history and adventure. Your road trip
follows the footsteps of fearless fur traders,
Cariboo Gold Rush hopefuls, and daredevil
Model T Ford drivers!
The Yellowhead’s most famous traveller
— and the highway’s namesake — is Pierre
Bostonais who was an Iroquois Métis guide
in the early 1800s. He led countless fur
traders through the seemingly impassable
Rocky Mountains, the first being James
McMillan in 1825, a chief trader with the
Hudson’s Bay Company. He also led the rival
North West Company through his route as
well. French voyageurs referred to him as
Tête Jaune (which translates to Yellowhead)
because of the blonde streaks in his hair
— and so his route became known as the
Yellowhead Pass.
20 GO Yellowhead 2017
In 1859, gold was discovered in the
Horsefly River causing a flood of travellers
t