Cottonwood Homestead is a pioneer ranch once serving the miners and fur traders traveling the Cariboo Waggon Trail while making their way to the gold rush fields in around the historic town of Barkerville. Today, it is a protected homestead, complete with heritage buildings, animals, artifacts and actors dressed in period costumes.

Cottonwood Homestead is a road house, still in tack, dating back to the gold rush days. Many visit the homestead every year while exploring the Heritage Highway located east of the community of Quesnel, British Columbia, Canada. The highway leads deep into Gold Rush Country and to other popular destinations like Wells, Bowron Lakes and Barkerville.

The main heritage building on the ranch is the road house - Cottonwood House. Inside the road house is the furnishings, artifacts and smells common with the era of the mid to late 1800s. Cottonwood House is only accessed by tour. But there is still plenty to see and experience while on a self guided tour of the heritage grounds like a root cellar, guest house, general store, candy store, hen house, horse barn and a blacksmith shop.

The homestead provides interpretive tours and wagon rides on the historic Cariboo Waggon Road. When roaming the grounds of the homestead one will find there is a picnic site, some cabin accommodations, a horseshoe pit and a some good opportunities to view farm animals and other wildlife. Expand your adventure further and there is a few walking trails in the area leading to the shores of Cottonwood River.

A pioneer by the name of John Boyd operated the road house in 1874. The Boyd family through generations continued to operate the ranch until 1951. Soon later the homestead became a heritage site and. today, it is one of the heritage sites on the Heritage Highway.

How to Get to Cottonwood Homestead: From the community of Quesnel travel north ( or travel south from the community of Prince George) on Highway 97. Located just outside of Quesnel is Highway 26 (The Heritage Highway) leading east to Wells, Bowron Lakes and Barkerville. Continue down the Highway 26 for approximately 20 minutes to Cottonwood Homestead.