Kilby Park
is a beautiful riverfront park and there's a wonderful pioneer history
associated with the Kilby Historic Store situated next to the park.
It's well worth a look through the restored boarding house, post office,
and general store to get a feel for life on the Fraser River at the
turn of the century, when steam wheelers linked small towns like Harrison
Mills with the docks downstream at Mission and New Westminster.
The first settlers came to the area in the late 1800s and started
milling lumber in 1870. Between 1870 and 1910, the tiny community
grew, as did local sawmill operations. In 1904, Harrison Mills
constructed a two-story building consisting of a general store and
a hotel, which the family operated until 1976. There is a small admission charge to view the store, which is open from May to October and at Christmas each year.
This small 3 hectare park is famous with bird watchers, as hundreds
of wintering bald eagles come to the area to feast on spawning salmon
in late autumn. Graceful trumpeter swans also migrate to the area
all the way from Alaska.
The park has a small picnic area offering the opportunity to spend
a relaxing afternoon on the shores of the Fraser River. The beach
at Kilby Provincial Park is particularly popular with water-skiers.
But don't forget your wet suit. Water temperatures in the park's Harrison
Bay is influenced by outflow from the chilled fjord waters of nearby
Harrison Lake and rarely warms up above 20 C. The beach is also popular
with anglers.
There are 22 vehicle/tent campsites in this park. Only basic facilities
are provided – pit toilets, picnic tables, fire pits, firewood and
water. The park is open year-round and fees are collected from March to November.
Kilby Provincial Park is located at Harrison Mills, 10 miles (15
km) west of Agassiz on Highway 7.
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