Commentary, nature, Photography

KVR Trail

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The Kettle Valley Rail Trail is a 660 km decommissioned passenger train line that used to run through southern British Columbia from Hope to Castlegar between 1910-1964.

Heading toward Penticton.

It continued to be in operation as a freight line until 1989 and after it fell out of use, the tracks were removed and it was re-purposed as a hiking, running, walking and biking trail.

Heading toward Kelowna.

M and I have walked chunks of it in all seasons; it has terrific views with the Columbia Mountains to the east and the Okanagan Mountains to the west.

Okanagan Lake from above.

The KVR is also part of the Trans Canada Trail, a cross-country network of trails, waterways and roadways that stretches from the Atlantic to the Arctic and Pacific Oceans.

The sun shines on a still-awakening valley.

The Trans Canada Trail, at 24,000 km, is the longest multi-use trail system in the world.

Grape vines and orchards below; the city of Penticton to the left.

We love having this trail almost at our doorstep and are so happy that 35 years ago, a group of forward-looking people decided to band together to re-purpose an old rail line.

Happy Tuesday.

32 thoughts on “KVR Trail”

    1. I do as well. This trail is extremely popular with bikers and hikers. There is camping 30 km further up the trail from where the pictures were taken and the next city is another 30 km after that. The trail is beautifully maintained year round, so it’s wonderful to be so close to it. Cheers.

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    1. We are really very fortunate. We wanted to have access to good outdoor activities and this trail is one of them. And yes, the views are fantastic – a great reward for climbing up the grade. 😊

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    1. Yes, Canada is pretty big, especially to the north. When I was in the military and posted to Alert on Ellesmere Island in the far north, I was 4600 km from Toronto in the south; Canada is about half as tall as it is wide. Because of that and since the trail goes to the Arctic Ocean, there’s a lot of added distance. Cheers. 🙂

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    1. I agree, Maggie. It’s so fantastic that a group of people formed a society to fundraise for and organise the re-purposing of it after the tracks were removed. You can bike or hike the 70km between Penticton and Kelowna and there’s a mid-way camping/hotel option with restaurants and a lake. It’s pretty great.

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    1. Thank you very much, Allan. It really has been put to good use; this trail is very popular. So good to see that and how successful it is. I hope you’re able to visit some time as I think you and Patty would probably really enjoy it. Cheers.

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    1. Thank you very much, Belinda. 😊 Agreed – the Trans Canada Trail is a fantastic connector.
      The views from this trail are really stunning. I’ve thought of the train passengers who took this route before WW I when it was apparently quite fancy and then they had the marvellous views as well. It was definitely a different time.

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    1. It is definitely wonderful and the views are marvellous. People can do as much or as little as they want; many will cycle or hike 35 km further on where there’s camping, hostels, a hotel, restaurant and lake.

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  10. I love rail trails – although I regret the loss of train service that used to be there! WP hid this post; I had to go through Reader to get to it. Sigh. But it worked –

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    1. Yes, train service, especially through the mountains, was pretty wonderful. But agreed, turning the old rail beds into trails is a great re-purposing.

      I’ve been in contact with a WP tech person about why this post is hiding – my tags aren’t working, either. Thanks for letting me know that you had trouble seeing it. Cheers.

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    1. It’s really terrific as it’s wide and smooth and is well maintained. We have hiked a lot of it in chunks; there’s a 70 km stretch between here and Kelowna with camping, a hotel, a restaurant, hostel and lake at about the 35 km point. That’s perfect for an overnight biking trip although too much to hike in a single day. I’ve heard of people breaking it up into a 4 or 5 day hike and that would be great as the scenery along the way through the mountains is beautiful.

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