Chase is a village located in the Interior of

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, Canada. It has a population of 3,399, and its main industries are

forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. ...

and

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mor ...

. It is located at the outlet of Little Shuswap Lake, which is the source of the

South Thompson River The South Thompson River is the southern branch of the Thompson River, the largest tributary of the Fraser River, in the Canadian province of British Columbia. It originates at the outlet of Little Shuswap Lake at the town of Chase and flows appr ...

. Chase Creek, which drops over three small waterfalls before flowing through the town, enters the South Thompson just below the lake's outlet.

Demographics

In the

2021 Census of Population The 2021 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population with a reference date of May 11, 2021. It follows the 2016 Canadian census, which recorded a population of 35,151,728. The overall response rate was 98%, which is sli ...

conducted by Statistics Canada, Chase had a population of 2,399 living in 1,175 of its 1,249 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 2,286. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.

Religion

According to the 2021 census, religious groups in Chase included: *

Irreligion Irreligion or nonreligion is the absence or rejection of religion, or indifference to it. Irreligion takes many forms, ranging from the casual and unaware to full-fledged philosophies such as atheism and agnosticism, secular humanism and ...

(1,465 persons or 61.6%) *

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

(880 persons or 37.0%) *

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religions, Indian religion or Indian philosophy#Buddhist philosophy, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha. ...

(10 persons or 0.4%) *Other (20 persons or 0.8%)

Government and infrastructure

Fire department

The Village of Chase provides fire services to the community through the Village of Chase Fire Department.

Policing

Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; french: Gendarmerie royale du Canada; french: GRC, label=none), commonly known in English as the Mounties (and colloquially in French as ) is the federal police, federal and national police service of ...

detachment is located in Chase and serves the village, surrounding highways and First Nations communities.

Health care

The Village of Chase is served by the Chase and District Health Centre, part of the

Interior Health Interior Health is a regional health authority in British Columbia. It is one of the five publicly-funded regional health authorities, serving the southern Interior region of British Columbia. Facilities As of 2020 Interior Health operates ...

Authority. The BC Ambulance Service maintains a station in the community.

Transportation

Roads

The

Trans-Canada Highway The Trans-Canada Highway (French: ; abbreviated as the TCH or T-Can) is a transcontinental federal–provincial highway system that travels through all ten provinces of Canada, from the Pacific Ocean on the west coast to the Atlantic Ocean on ...

runs adjacent to the south side of the community and provides access to the nearby regional centres of Kamloops ( west) and Salmon Arm ( east). Other, minor routes connect Chase to Falkland and Barriere. There has been a perennial proposal to construct a winterized road between Chase and nearby Sun Peaks to aid in the development of Chase's economy. The road would offer a shorter route for visitors arriving at the resort community from the east.

Railway

The Canadian Pacific Railway mainline travels through the community with through freight and passenger traffic.

Airports

The closest commercial airport is the Kamloops Airport. The Shuswap (Skwlax Field) Aerodrome is located on the northeast side of Little Shuswap Lake.

Culture and recreation

The primary attraction for the Village of Chase is Little Shuswap Lake. Beaches, boat launches and a large pier provide access to the lake and South Thompson River. The Sunshore Golf Club provides a nine-hole golf course. Some Chase residents say "There are two seasons in Chase; Corn season, and waiting for corn season." The town is known for its fertile farm land, and celebrates the production and sharing of local food.

Sport

Chase is home to the Chase Heat of the

Kootenay International Junior Hockey League The Kootenay International Junior Hockey League (KIJHL) is a Junior "B" Ice Hockey league in British Columbia, Canada sanctioned by Hockey Canada. The winner of the Teck Cup competes with the champions of the Pacific Junior Hockey League ...

. It was the home of the Chase Chiefs of the same league, who existed from 2007 to 2010, before relocating to Kelowna.

History

The town was named after one of the first settlers in the district, Whitfield Chase who established a ranch where the

runs out of Little Shuswap Lake in 1865. When the Adams River Lumber Company laid out the town in 1902, James A. Magee, secretary of the company named the town for Chase.

References

External links

* * {{authority control Villages in British Columbia Populated places in the Thompson-Nicola Regional District Thompson Country Shuswap Country