Photo: Reuben KrabbeGolden, BC

Kootenay Flathead Fandango

A ride described at Bikepack Canada

How we describe routes →

Ambitious A real undertaking. Demanding on a couple of fronts, like rough surfaces plus steady climbing, or a long stretch on busier roads.

Difficulty Our overall read of how demanding a route is. We score surface roughness, climbing, singletrack, and how far it runs from services. The route publisher's own rating, a lot of busy road riding, or sheer scale can push the tier up, never down.

Derived from OpenStreetMap. Good data, not perfect. Spot something wrong? Tell us.

How we describe routes →

A roughly 1,200 km gravel-focused loop from Fernie through the Flathead into Montana, Idaho, and Washington and back into the Kootenays, following portions of the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route and BC Epic 1000. Mapped by Megan Dunn, it mixes forest service roads, some pavement, a short singletrack stretch, and one demanding hike-a-bike descent through bear country, with a free ferry crossing of Kootenay Lake near Nelson.

Get the route on Bikepack Canada →Free route map on Ride with GPS ↗

Where this ride goes#

Approximate lineGet the real route ↗

Map key & layers

Show stops Mute other bike trails

Food & DrinkAttractionsSuppliesCampingAccommodationBike ServicesTransport

Riding near fast trafficFastest stretches

Dashed line = our rough sketch of where the ride goes. The rideable route lives at get the route from Bikepack Canada.

Fast-road stretches#

We believe these are the fast, unprotected roads on this route. We can tell you which roads and roughly how far, but not the order you will ride them. If you see an error, tell us and we'll fix it.

about 42 km of Highway 3A · near Troup
about 16 km of Crowsnest Highway · near Mayook
about 13 km of Nelson-Nelway Highway · near Nelway
about 7 km of Elko-Roosville Highway · near Roosville
short stretches on other roads · 2 km total

☕Stops worth stopping for145 along this route

Kootenay Lake Ferry: cyclists walk or roll bikes aboard as foot passengers at no charge… Unboxed bikes OK. · Nelson

Nelson Brewing Company: one of BC's original craft breweries, founded in 1991... first craft brewery east of the Okanagan... historic building that has housed brewing since the 1800s. · Nelson

Communities along this route#

Nelson 52 Kimberley 33 Fernie 26 Cranbrook 8 Salmo 8 Crescent Bay 5 Flathead 3 Balfour 2 Crawford Bay 2 Willow Point 2 Baynes Lake 1 Mountain Station 1 Sunshine Bay 1 Ymir 1

Nelson (52)

Kootenay Lake FerryWelcoming· Ferry

Nelson Brewing CompanyInfo· Brewery / Pub · $$ · Casual

Gerick Cycle & SkiAccredited· Repair Shop

Backroads BreweryWelcoming· Brewery / Pub · $$ · Casual

Kootenay co-opWelcoming· Grocery Store

LibraryWelcoming· Restaurant · $$$ · Upscale

Mike's Place PubWelcoming· Brewery / Pub · $$ · Casual

Nelson Museum Archives & GalleryWelcoming· Museum / Gallery · $$

Oso Negro CaféWelcoming· Café / Coffee · $ · Cheap eats

Outer Clove RestaurantWelcoming· Restaurant · $$ · Casual

Plus the fast-food chains — A&W, Edo Japan, KFC +3 more

+36 more in Nelson →

Kimberley (33)

Centre 64Info· Museum / Gallery · Free

Cominco GardensInfo· Park / Nature · Free

Kimberley Aquatic CentreInfo· Community Centre · $

Kimberley Heritage MuseumInfo· Museum / Gallery · Free

The SullivanInfo· Brewery / Pub · $$ · Casual

Biscuit: A Place To SupInfo· Restaurant · $$ · Casual

BlackdogInfo· Repair Shop

Bohemian SpiritsInfo· Brewery / Pub · $$ · Casual

Burrito GrillInfo· Restaurant · $ · Cheap eats

Fantails Expresso BarInfo· Café / Coffee · $ · Cheap eats

Plus the fast-food chains — A&W, Subway

+21 more in Kimberley →

Fernie (26)

Fernie Heritage LibraryWelcoming· Library · Free

Fernie Aquatic CentreInfo· Community Centre · $

Fernie MuseumInfo· Museum / Gallery · Free

Straight Line BicyclesInfo· Repair Shop

The Arts StationInfo· Museum / Gallery · Free

The Brickhouse Bar & GrillInfo· Brewery / Pub · $$ · Casual

The CentralInfo· Brewery / Pub · $$ · Casual

The Fernie TaphouseInfo· Restaurant · $ · Cheap eats

The LocalInfo· Grocery Store

Raging Elk Adventure LodgingAccredited· Hostel · $ · Rock-bottom

+16 more in Fernie →

Cranbrook (8)

Great Canadian Liquor WarehouseInfo· Liquor Store

Travellers MotelInfo· Hotel / Motel · $$ · Budget

Real Canadian SuperstoreInfo· Grocery Store

Super 8Info· Hotel / Motel · $$ · Budget

WalmartInfo· Grocery Store

Plus the fast-food chains — Booster Juice, Tim Hortons, Wendy's

Salmo (8)

Reno MotelInfo· Hotel / Motel · $$ · Budget

Salmo Municipal CampgroundInfo· Public Campground

Salmo Valley Public LibraryInfo· Library · Free

Salmo Valley Youth & Community CentreInfo

Salmo Village Grocery on MainInfo· Grocery Store

The Dragon Fly CaféInfo· Café / Coffee · $ · Cheap eats

EssoInfo· Convenience Store

Plus the fast-food chains — Subway

Crescent Bay (5)

Friends Campground And Day UseInfo· Public Campground

Group CampgroundInfo· Public Campground

Kokanee Creek Provincial Park Visitor CentreInfo· Visitor Centre · Free

Redfish CampgroundInfo· Public Campground

Sandspit CampgroundInfo· Public Campground

Flathead (3)

Butts CabinInfo· Public Campground

Butts Recreation SiteInfo· Public Campground

Ram/Cabin Pass Recreation SiteInfo· Public Campground

Balfour (2)

Kokanee Park MarinaInfo· Convenience Store

Balfour SuperetteInfo· Convenience Store

Crawford Bay (2)

Black Salt CafeInfo· Café / Coffee · $ · Cheap eats

Kokanee Chalets RV Park and CampgroundInfo· Private Campground

Willow Point (2)

Kokanee Glacier ResortInfo· Hotel / Motel · $$ · Budget

Duhamel StoreInfo· Grocery Store

Baynes Lake (1)

Surveyors Lake CampgroundInfo· Public Campground

Mountain Station (1)

Cool Waters RV ParkInfo· Private Campground

Slice and dice these stops in the directory →

These stops come from our directory of welcoming places across BC. Spot something wrong, missing, or closed? Tell us and we'll fix it.

⛴Getting here, bike and allNelson

Getting to this ride, bike and all#

Nelson is the handiest transit doorway for this ride. Buses, the SkyTrain, and ferries will carry you and your bike there:

Castlegarbest: bus
Vancouverbest: bus
Victoriabest: bus + SkyTrain
Nanaimobest: ferry + SkyTrain + bus

Also on the bike-transit map: Kimberley · Fernie · Cranbrook · Salmo

Or pick any two places on To & Fro →

🪶Traditional territories

The BC portion of this route travels through the traditional territories of the Cayuse, Umatilla and Walla Walla, Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, Ĩyãħé Nakón mąkóce (Stoney), Kalispel, Ktunaxa ɁamakɁis, snʕickstx tmxʷúlaʔxʷ (Sinixt), and Syilx (Okanagan).

Territory data from Native Land Digital, for educational purposes only.

Ready to ride it?

Get the route on Bikepack Canada →Free route map on Ride with GPS ↗Got the GPX? Add BC Bike Stops to it →