To find this access point turn west off Highway 33 about 400 metres south of the bridge at Westbridge. Follow the road north to the end and you'll see the signs pointing to the nearest destinations on the Kettle Valley Rail Trail. Parking is available here at the access point.
Kettle Valley Rail Trail
This historic rail trail running from Brookmere to Midway is one of the most impressive sections of the Trans Canada Trail. Built on the route of the Kettle Valley Railway which opened in 1915 to transport silver ore to the coast, this trail showcases the genius of early railway pioneers who built countless trestles and tunnels to cross the two mountain ranges. One of the most popular and spectacular stretches is near Kelowna through Myra Canyon which has been designated a national historic site. The 12-km section offers fabulous views of the Canyon from 18 trestles that span the gorge on this cliff-hanging trail.
From the Trans Canada Trail
Built in the early twentieth century, the Kettle Valley Railway (KVR), was a subsidiary of the CPR, the intention of which was to ensure a Canadian railroad presence in the Boundary Country and the South Okanagan. This section of the railroad, known as the Carmi Subdivision, was constructed beginning in 1910.
Declining use caused the elimination of passenger service on the KVR in 1964. Eight years later this, the Carmi Subdivision, was shut down, with the tracks being torn up sometime later. By 1989 the entire Kettle Valley Railway was abandoned and the tracks removed. In the 1990s work was begun on the construction of the
Kettle Valley Rail Trail (KVRT), which encompasses essentially the entire KVR railbed, from Midway, BC to Hope.
Major sections of the KVRT have since been incorporated into the
Trans Canada Trail, including the entire Carmi Subdivision. Abundant parking is available here as this is a very rural area.
The KVRT is about 400 kilometres in length with numerous access points. The official start, or “Mile 0” of the KVRT is in Midway, BC, while the "end" is at Hope, BC, where it connects with the Silverhope Creek Trail. This trail connects to further trails which continue west to the Pacific. At Midway the trail connects to the
Columbia and Western Rail Trail which is also part of the Trans Canada Trail. The Columbia and Western Rail Trail ends at Midway where the KVRT begins. Though the KVRT runs through mountain country for the entirety of its journey, this being a Rail Trail, there are no grades steeper than 2 to 3 percent.
The entire length of the main section of the KVRT is also the Trans Canada Trail (TCT), currently just over 18,000 kilometres long. It is hoped that, by 2017, the 25th anniversary of the TCT, the trail will be complete, stretching 24,000 kilometres in total.