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Reputedly christened by prospectors with a grounding in Dante, HOPE - as in "Abandon all hope &" - is a pleasant mountain-ringed town that achieved a certain fame as the place wasted in spectacular fashion by Sylvester Stallone at the end of First Blood , the first Rambo movie. Despite the number of roads that converge here - the Trans-Canada, Hwy 3 and the Coquihalla - it remains a remarkably unspoilt stopover. In the past it was rivers, not roads, that accounted for the town's growth: the Fraser and two of its major tributaries, the Skagit and Coquihalla, meet at the townsite. The aboriginal villages here were forced to move when a Hudson's Bay post was established in 1848, the status quo being further disturbed when the gold rush hit in 1858. The bust that followed boom in neighbouring places was averted in Hope, largely because its situation made it an important station stop on the Canadian Pacific. Today the town's pretty location, which catches visitors slightly unaware, is turning it into something of a sight in its own right.

The infocentre (daily: summer 8am-8pm; rest of year 9am-5pm; tel 604/869-2021, www.hopechamber.bc.ca ) is the building next to the artfully dumped pile of antique farm machinery at 919 Water Ave. The town museum (May-Sept daily 9am-5pm; donation) is in the same building, and offers the usual hand-me-downs of Hope's erstwhile old-timers. Across the road, the lovely view over the Fraser as it funnels out of the mountains is one of the town's best moments. Time permitting, drop by Memorial Park downtown, where trees ravaged by rot have been given a new lease of life by a local chainsaw sculptor. Nearby, the Christ Church National Historic Site , built in 1861, is one of BC's oldest churches still on its original site. Another one-off novelty is the "H" tree at the corner of 5th Street and Hudson's Bay Street, two trees cleverly entwined as saplings to grow together in the form of an "H" for Hope.

Hiking, fishing, canoeing, and even gold-panning are all popular time-wasters around the hundreds of local lakes and rivers, details of which are available from the infocentre. Of the hikes, the Rotary Trail (3km) to the confluence of the Fraser and Coquihalla rivers is popular, as is the more demanding clamber over gravel paths to the top of Thacker Mountain (5km). Another walking expedition worth pursuing is the dark jaunt through the tunnels of the abandoned Vancouver-Nelson railway, reached by a short trail from the Coquihalla Canyon Recreation Area , 6km northeast of town off Coquihalla Hwy. This was one of the backcountry locations used during the filming of First Blood , and offers spectacular views over the cliffs and huge sand bars of the Coquihalla Gorge. Kawkawa Lake Provincial Park , 3km northeast of Hope off Hwy 3, is another popular mountain retreat, endowed with plenty of hiking, relaxing and swimming opportunities. The latest big thrill hereabouts, though, is gliding , or soaring, the prevailing westerly winds funnelling suddenly into the valley above Hope creating perfect thermals for the sport. The Vancouver Soaring Association (tel 604/521-5501), at Hope airport, offer thirty-minute unpowered flights (no experience necessary; $90).