KVR Through Coquihalla Summits (BC)

The KVR (kettle valley railway) construction and maintenance through the Coquihalla Summits was a huge undertaking. After a washout in 1959 the line through the summits was abandoned. We're off on a exploratory walk along the old line to see what remains 50 years on.

[johnuhelski]

Highly unstable area, amazing they even built this line thru here. Nice vid boys !

[EqualizerPG]

Tunnel portals are dated for when the concrete was done. Which was there attempt to fortify the route years after it was opened.

[Panzerkita]

Thank you for this, well done! I could have watched fir hours!

[johnarnold]

KVR goes to Castlegar and there are more tunnels and even a steel trestle on the way up the mountain from Grand Forks. When they built the Kennelyside dam in the 50's they had to raise the rail bed so there is a tunnel that is underwater when the lake is up. At certain times you can drive a boat thru the tunnel that is close to the pulp mill in Castlegar.

[analogueandyx]

I was just here... well not quite... yesterday (May 13), and the gate was closed (from toll area). A sign was posted on the gate which read, closed due to slide. It was dated Sept. 2023. I headed back to Ladner Creek trestle. I hadn't been there since 2011. I was surprised at how much that area had changed... tree falls on the trail, more active slide area near the north portal of tunnel. Trestle is fenced off.

[locker]

Been wanting to go back to that area. In the late /70's we explored a short section just north of Hope and I remember looking down to the valley bottom at a rail line. There was a "water shoot" beside us. there was a funnel in the sand stone up the hill from us then a "portal" beside us we could see the water running through then way down towards the valley bottom the water came shooting out of the hill side, would really like to find that place again.

[MOTOMINING]

I rode from the Coq to Summerland last June on the KVR, I can guarantee parts of the trail that I rode are now gone. Glad I got out when I did!

[mikezaytsoff]

It's an interesting coincidence that only a few months after posting this amazing video, the Coquihalla Highway has been smashed almost as badly as that trestle was. Nature sure is vicious in that part of BC.

[barbarawinkle]

Beautiful video! Please continue to do more if possible! Thank you.

[leekenney]

Been through by MTB, first time 1985 ! You can even see rock ramps that the old cattle drives used to get through ! The expansion of the pipeline will do further change !

[tandemcompound]

it is a nice bike trip from Summit to Shylock. just make sure you have car to get back up the hill back to start place.

[alexinnewwest]

Very nicely done! If you keep walking further south there is another tunnel you actually drive threw, but that would be a bit of a long walk also there is a concrete snow shed

[brucewmclaughlin]

dates of tunnels are different as one year they had money to upgrade and a year or more later they upgraded the other end of the tunnel . Odd that they would have a wood barrier between the rock face and the concrete ? I have camped at various locations up there in the peace and quiet of that river far below.

[cherylsibson]

Maybe the old KVR goes right to Othello Tunnels in the Sumas Valley? Maybe they do. You should look into it.

[BADBIKERBENNY]

You can see the date on the tunnel at 1:07. 1951. How do you get here.

[Bobcagon]

This railway is a testament to the ingenuity of man. However, Mother Nature is more ingenuousness.

[okrasaghia]

Those historic clips are realy interesting, is more available somewhere?

[central]

Wish I could riden this line but I wasn't born then.

[kelseyhayes]

All the tunnels you went through were intentionally collapsed except for the tunnel with the bypass road beside it at the same level as the railroad. Instead of repairing that tunnel the CPR just built a bypass around it.

[bcoffroadadventures]

Use tondeive this route after they took the rails out but I don't rember how to get back downnthere