Canada Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX IT Services GmbH (contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data), CC BY 4.0, with relief shading from Copernicus WorldDEM-30
The cut
1,290 metres, to scale.
A slice through French Bar Canyon where it is deepest and narrowest, measured on the Copernicus relief model every 30 m. Same scale as the landmark standing on the floor.
Standing on the floor, to scale: Eiffel Tower · 330 m · Burj Khalifa · 828 m
Depth is measured to the lower rim; the width is from rim to rim. A 30 m relief model smooths the narrowest walls, so a slot canyon reads shallower than it is.
1,290m
Depth
measured on the 30 m relief model
13.6km
Rim to rim
measured on the 30 m relief model
41°
Steepest wall
average over 300 m, from the relief
285m
Floor altitude
Rim to floor
9 °C warmer at the bottom.
In July the afternoon reaches 29 °C on the floor, against 20 °C on the rim. The best months to hike are in May and in September. The rim freezes at night from October to April. The wettest months are in June.
- 3°-6°Jan
- 4°-5°Feb
- 9°0°Mar
- 14°5°Apr
- 20°11°May
- 24°15°Jun
- 29°20°Jul
- 28°19°Aug
- 22°13°Sep
- 14°5°Oct
- 7°-2°Nov
- 2°-7°Dec
Afternoon highs, 1991–2020 averages (NASA POWER) brought to the altitude of the rim and of the floor with the standard lapse rate (6.5 °C per 1 000 m). Shade, wind and rock change this on the day. Not a forecast.
Valley in British Columbia, Canada
French Bar Canyon is a canyon in Canada, cut by the Fraser River. The relief model measures 1,290 m from the floor to the lower rim. Rim to rim it is 14 km wide where the cut was taken.
Getting there.
- Williams Lake Airport (YWL)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 108 km in a straight lineCar hire at YWL airport (Williams Lake)Discover Cars · sponsored link↗
- In May and in Septemberbest months to hike (estimate)
Plan the visit
Guided hikes, a bed nearby, a car.
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
The river
The Fraser River runs highest from March to July.
The Fraser River carries about 1,614 m³/s on average here. It runs highest from March to July, fed by melting snow.
- 1,747 m³/sJan
- 2,102 m³/sFeb
- 2,589 m³/sMar
- 2,605 m³/sApr
- 3,143 m³/sMay
- 3,209 m³/sJun
- 2,398 m³/sJul
- 1,575 m³/sAug
- 986 m³/sSep
- 592 m³/sOct
- 853 m³/sNov
- 1,625 m³/sDec
From about 592 m³/s in the lowest month to 3,209 m³/s in the highest. Its basin above this point covers 145,088 km².
Follow the Fraser River from source to mouth on Riveryas
Estimate: long-term flow from the HydroATLAS model (WaterGAP, 1971–2000) shaped by the monthly rain, snow and temperature of the area (NASA POWER). Dams change it. Not a forecast.
From the sky.
The canyon from above, with the relief shaded, the line of the cut, the river and what people have mapped around it.
N
6 km
Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 24 × 24 km, north up. The line is the cut above. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Around the canyon.
- viewpoints within 5 km
- marked hiking routes within 4 km
- via ferrata routes within 4 km
- climbing crags within 3 km
- footbridges and suspension bridges within 3 km
- rafting, canoe, kayak or canyoning spots within 4 km
- swimming spots within 3 km
- named waterfalls within 4 km
- caves within 3 km
- car parks within 3 km
- information boards and visitor centres within 4 km
- bus stops within 2 km
- campsites within 8 km
- hotels and guesthouses within 8 km
- restaurants and cafés within 4 km
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, around the floor of the canyon. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
In our other atlases
What else is around French Bar Canyon.
The river that carved it, the waterfalls inside it, the mountains on the rim, the lakes, beaches and island nearby — from our six sister atlases, each with its own figures.
Peakyas2 mountains within 15 km
Lakeyas1 lakes within 15 kmComing soonFigures from the sister sites' databases (Wikidata, HydroATLAS, GeoNames, NOAA, OpenStreetMap). Links open when each site is online.
Month by month
The weather, at the floor and at the rim.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon · floor | 3 | 4 | 9 | 14 | 20 | 24 | 29 | 28 | 22 | 14 | 7 | 2 |
| Afternoon · rim | -6 | -5 | 0 | 5 | 11 | 15 | 20 | 19 | 13 | 5 | -2 | -7 |
| Night · rim | -14 | -14 | -10 | -6 | -1 | 3 | 6 | 5 | 1 | -5 | -10 | -15 |
| Rain (mm) | 40 | 30 | 37 | 33 | 49 | 58 | 42 | 34 | 44 | 43 | 51 | 44 |
| Rainy days | 11 | 9 | 11 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 12 | 13 | 12 |
| Sun hours/day | 2.5 | 4.9 | 6.7 | 7.5 | 8.0 | 8.2 | 9.8 | 9.0 | 6.8 | 4.4 | 2.2 | 1.9 |
| Snow on the ground (cm) | 23 | 22 | 17 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 17 | 19 |
| Afternoon · floor | Afternoon · rim | Night · rim | Rain (mm) | Sun hours/day | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 3 | -6 | -14 | 40 | 2.5 |
| Feb | 4 | -5 | -14 | 30 | 4.9 |
| Mar | 9 | 0 | -10 | 37 | 6.7 |
| Apr | 14 | 5 | -6 | 33 | 7.5 |
| May | 20 | 11 | -1 | 49 | 8.0 |
| Jun | 24 | 15 | 3 | 58 | 8.2 |
| Jul | 29 | 20 | 6 | 42 | 9.8 |
| Aug | 28 | 19 | 5 | 34 | 9.0 |
| Sep | 22 | 13 | 1 | 44 | 6.8 |
| Oct | 14 | 5 | -5 | 43 | 4.4 |
| Nov | 7 | -2 | -10 | 51 | 2.2 |
| Dec | 2 | -7 | -15 | 44 | 1.9 |
Averages 1991–2020 (NASA POWER) for a cell about 55 km wide, brought to the floor (285 m) and the rim (1,684 m) with the standard lapse rate. Not a forecast.
Recent years
Wet years, dry years.
Rain of each month as a share of the 1991–2020 average. A dry year means a lower river and hotter rock; a wet one, more water in the gorge.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 108% | 110% | 46% | 56% | 102% | 111% | 152% | 73% | 48% | 191% | 83% | 76% |
| 2021 | 64% | 120% | 58% | 50% | 57% | 35% | 39% | 146% | 81% | 90% | 125% | 130% |
| 2022 | 112% | 74% | 58% | 76% | 78% | 109% | 76% | 91% | 48% | 28% | 79% | 69% |
| 2023 | 82% | 156% | 39% | 55% | 114% | 111% | 50% | 123% | 72% | 44% | 38% | 74% |
| 2024 | 118% | 108% | 58% | 95% | 97% | 82% | 38% | 171% | 86% | 99% | 75% | 71% |
| 2025 | 43% | 60% | 139% | 71% | 83% | 112% | 206% | 156% | 130% | 175% | 66% | 115% |
130% or more: wet month 70% or less: dry month
Compare with the neighbours.
French Bar Canyon
Canada
- 1,290 mDepth
- 14 kmRim to rim
- —Length
- 41°Steepest wall
Where these figures come from
| Name, type, published depth and length | Wikidata (Q5501686) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| The cut: depth, width, wall and 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| River flow and basin | HydroATLAS / RiverATLAS v1.0 (Linke et al. 2019) · CC BY 4.0 |
| Climate | NASA POWER, 1991–2020 |
| Viewpoints, trails, bridges and the river line | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Rivers, waterfalls, mountains, lakes, beaches and islands nearby | Coastya, Lakeyas, Peakyas, Cascadyas, Islandyas, Riveryas |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
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