Over the past few weeks, we've been touring the Kootenays again...had so much fun last year.
On June 11th we ended up in Castlegar, as per our itinerary, so we made plans to check out the C&W rail trail on the following day.
We picked up the trail near the Hugh Keenleyside dam, west of town.
The trail starts at river level (436m), but climbs to over 1200m before reaching the Farron summit, just over 40 km away. Along the first 30 km, we are treated to several trestles and tunnels.
Some awesome views/scenery along the way as you start to see just how big Arrow Lake is...
One of several tunnels encountered within the first 15 km....
Without a doubt...the creepiest tunnel I have ever ridden through. The Bulldog Tunnel is almost 1 km long and when you enter from the north end...there is ZERO lighting until you have completed about 800 meters of its length.
I probably should have let my eyes adjust to the darkness a bit more before proceeding....even the LED headlight didn't help much.
I probably should have let my eyes adjust to the darkness a bit more before proceeding....even the LED headlight didn't help much.
We spotted this little "shack" just south of Corkendahl station....built into the hillside.
One last look at Arrow Lake before the trail turns inland...
We made it as far as the Paulson bypass, but a couple of km's further south, Walker Creek had washed out part of the trail. I "probably" could have made it across the washout, but I would have meant having to wade the creek (water was about mid-calf deep with many large rocks) but since we were "two-up" we decided against spending the rest of the day with wet feet.
The only solution was to take the Highway to Christina Lake, then pickup the trail at Santa Rosa....ride the 25+ km North to the washout, then turn around and ride 25+km back to Santa Rosa, then highway back to Paulson bypass...basically adding over 100 km and several hours to the journey.
We had a snack at the bypass then headed back.
When you enter the Bulldog Tunnel from the south, things are a bit different....
The slight curve at the South end means the North end of the tunnel is visible soon after entering...although it's still a LOOOOONG ways to go, in darkness.
More awesome views of Arrow Lake and the countryside on the way back...also found this old telegraph pole near the Farr trestle.
Awesome ride...well worth the time!
Bring water and your version of the essentials. You're a ways from anything if you break down.
Also...be aware that some vehicles use this trail as well, so you could meet a car or truck in a tunnel or on a trestle.
Lots of mosquitoes at the summit...saw one bear and a couple of deer.
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