Cache Creek, BC, population 963
According to Travel British Columbia,
Cache Creek can accurately be described as a bustling oasis town in
the midst of cactus, tumbleweed and a desert-like climate.
A casual passerby like myself could be excused for taking issue with the "bustling oasis town" part of that sentence. It just appears to be a cross roads town at the intersection of the Trans Canada Highway (1) and the Caribou Highway (97). Motels and places to eat. No chain motels or restaurants except for a Subway (those guys are everywhere). A bar advertising karoke night, a gift shop, a tiny Cache Creek Library (now, that's unexpected).
Of course I'm being unkind and unfair. This town has a history going back to the 19th. century and got a boost during the Gold Rush. Many small towns linger on through a kind of inertia long after their original reason for being has disappeared. But Cache Creek does have a strategic position when it comes to servicing modern travelers. It's at an intersection of two heavily traveled highways and is conveniently positioned at roughly a day's travel time from cities like Vancouver to the south and Prince George to the north.
Actually, I like the bit about "cactus, tumbleweed and a desert-like climate." Last year when passing through I noted that the landscape reminded me of the high desert outside L.A., just a bit lusher due to additional rainfall.
I ate at the Heartland Restaurant. It's run by a big Greek fellow in a Tyrolean style hat who bustles back and forth between the kitchen and tables of favored guests (yours truly not included). Chicken souvlaki was tasty.