Trans Canada Trail - BC Trail - Kettle Valley Railroad - Cycle Tour

We planned to do a section of the Trans Canada Trail that stretched from Cultus Lake to Castlegar, including the BC Trail and the Kettle Valley Railroad (KVR). We would be doing nearly 800km over nine days, almost entirely on trails and gravel. Unlucky for us, the 2021 Heatdome that baked the PNW overlapped with our entire trip. By the last day, we were cycling in temperature approaching 40 degrees Celcius.

After getting a ride out to Cultus lake we both started setting up our bikes in a nearby parking lot.

The first section of the trail was a fairly easy logging road with some lingering wet sections. A stark contrast to the extreme heat and dry conditions we would experience just a few days later.

There were plenty of wild berries along the trail this first day.

The trail quickly changed to an extremely rough single track that had us getting off the bikes often. This section from Cultus Lake to Chilliwack Lake would have been much better with a proper mountain bike.

While this day was challenging, this was probably one of the most beautiful sections of the trail.

The next day we began making our way up from Chilliwack Lake to Pale Face Pass. With the highest elevation of the trip, we expected it to be a long and tough day.

One of the many creeks we crossed that day. No wet feet yet...

At the peak, we were met with a foot or two of snow. It was pretty slow going hiking the bikes up and down through the 2km that it covered.

What we thought we be a welcome and fast descent turned into a nightmare, with thick brush collapsed by the weight of the snow. We couldn't help but laugh at how ridiculously overgrown it was and how it was unlikely anyone had come through here in quite a while.

So much for dry feet. Despite Jeff's smile, this is his worst nightmare.

The further we went, the denser the brush became. It was interesting seeing what would be 30 days of plant growth happen in real-time as we descended to lower elevations and warmer temperatures.

The obstacles were relentless!. We only managed 70km with a full day of riding.

We finally made it to Hope 10 hours later! I didn't know this, but they filmed Rambo First Blood here!

That night we camped at a private campground just beyond the Othello Tunnels.

I usually like to have oatmeal and some fruit for breakfast if we aren't in town. It's light, packs down small and is quick to make.

We planned on doing the entire Coquihalla Pass, so this was Jeff's food for the day. He ran out.

The trail followed the highway closely most the day.

There was a short 3-4km section that forced us onto the highway due to the trail crossing a large river, maybe it was possible to cross the river later in the year, but there was no way we could have with the water levels as high as they were.

One way we beat the heat was by soaking our clothing in streams we would pass by.

About halfway up, the trail branched far from the highway and followed the old railroad. This beautiful section passed by one of the long-abandoned rail tunnels.

Marmot!

Once we crossed over the summit, we had to deal with a few washouts.

After the last washout, we decided to camp for the night.

The next morning we set out for Princeton, where we were looking forward to a hot shower and real bed.

One of our easier days had us arriving in Princeton early in the day. Lots of time to do some laundry and relax a bit.

One of the many trestles we would pass over on our trip. I loved seeing these!

That evening we found a nice wild campsite by the river. It even had a picnic table.

A fan of Shawshank Redemption.

The next day headed for Penticton and then onto Chute Lake for the night.

This was one of the original rail stations on the Kettle Valley Railroad.

As we approached Penticton we crossed over the Trout Creek Trestle. Built between 1910 and 1915, the section of the KVR in Summerland between Trout Creek and Bathville Road is the only preserved section of the railway that is still used to this day.

We took a welcome swim break at one of the local beaches in town.

After a quick lunch in town, we headed up through the vineyards to Chute Lake.

Rock Ovens like this can be found along the route of the Kettle Valley Railway. Building the KVR was hard, dangerous work. With an oven like this at camp, workers could have freshly baked bread each day.

Jeff cycled within inches of this rattlesnake! It reared up and came at him as he went by, but thankfully he was going fast enough to avoid it.

Another decommissioned rail tunnel that you can go inside and explore. This is as far as you can go in this particular one due to a cave-in.

One of many stops to filter water. Temperatures at this point in the trip were reaching 35 degrees Celcius. We were getting up at 5-6 am just to avoid the heat of the day.

We met Gary at Chute Lake the night before. He was only doing a section of the trail but was on a 25-year-old mountain bike. He ended up being way faster than us.

As we came to the top of the pass, we had an amazing view of Kelowna with the 2003 Okanagan Mountain Park Wildfire remains in the foreground. As of 2017, it was the single most damaging and significant wildfire in B.C.'s history, causing $200 million in damages and destroying over 230 homes.

The Myra Canyon Trestles originally transited between Midway and Penticton. When the railway was built, the section of railway between Myra station and June Springs station required 18 wooden trestles and two tunnels in order to traverse the deep canyon.

14 of 18 of the trestles were destroyed in that same 2003 fire and then later rebuilt.

This cow had escaped and was very curious as we attempted to cross through one of the many farm gates.

Another instense day of heat had us seaking out some relief in a nearby river in the town of Midway.

I had some fun trying to grab onto this rope in the heavy currents.

Our last day was going to be both the hottest and longest of the trip. 40 degrees Celcius and 160km to cover. We were planning on going from Greenwood all the way to our final destination of Castlegar. We got up at 5 am to maximize the amount of daylight we would have and to avoid the extreme heat of the day.

Nine days on the trail and we finally saw our first bear! Only 10 minutes later we saw a second!

The Bulldog tunnel is the longest on the trail, at nearly 1km long. Once inside, you can't even see the other end. As soon as you approach the tunnel, you immediately feel the crisp cool air coming from the entrance. With the extreme heat we were dealing with, we didn't want to leave!

Nearly 800km later, we finished! Including my first 160km day!