Trail Running in the Southwest Kootenays of British Columbia
A view of the Valhalla Mountains from the top of Idaho Peak
I was born and raised in the small ski-hippy town of Nelson. It’s nestled in the Kootenay’s of British Columbia, an area that spans the traditional territories of the Ktunaxa, Sinixt, and Syilx First Nations. The area boasts humble mountains, face-deep powder, and potlucks galore. It draws draft dodgers, foresters, creative artists, green thumbs, double black diamond mountain bikers, and powder snob skiers. The communities are gems with lush and peaceful lifestyles.
When it comes to trail running, especially ultra running, a handful of ultra runners exist in the Kootenays. There’s Colleen in this town, Eva in that town, Tibo is always keen, Baptiste will be up for an adventure, Corby will bushwhack for 12 hrs straight, or I’ve heard rumors of a Becky north of here, and of course, there are trail beasts like the Jacksons and Daves. Most trail and ultra runners in the Kootenays aren’t afraid of being creative with their trail choices. There are great trails out there, but oftentimes if you want a 50k loop, bushwhacking and bear spray are pretty much mandatory. That said, there are special long-distance trails to run in this area that are treasures to be cared for, protected, and cherished.
The scene at Sapphire Lakes in Kokanee Glacier Provincial Park during a trail run
With that, I’ve created a FATMAP Guidebook to Trail Running Gems in the Southwest Kootenay's of BC. It includes many of my favourite routes! The routes encompass Nelson, Kaslo, Duncan, Kimberley, and Cranbrook. These trail-running routes offer runnable, technical to scrambling, bushwhacking, and route-finding. There are descriptions of how to get there, approximate durations, optimal timing, and route difficulty rating. Feel free to contact me with questions. See below for all the routes.
Routes included in the Guidebook:
Fairly High to Very High - Nelson: runnable singletrack
Toad Mountain Loop - Nelson: runnable singletrack, technical, light exposure
Whitewater SkyRun - Nelson: runnable, scrambling, exposure, route-finding, and light bushwhacking
Grohman Skyline - Nelson: runnable with route-finding, moderate bushwhacking, and light scrambling
Sapphire Lakes - Kokanee Glacier Provincial Park, Nelson: runnable with technical sections
Kokanee Glacier Tour - Nelson: runnable with technical, boulder navigation and light scrambling
Reco-Texas - Kaslo: runnable double and singletrack
Sphinx and Thanksgiving Peaks - Crawford Bay: runnable and technical with route finding
Jumbo Pass - Duncan: runnable, technical
Around the Mountain - Kimberley: runnable singletrack
Mt Baker - Cranbrook: runnable and lightly technical
