Photo: Let's Go BikingNorth Star & Chief Isadore

North Star & Chief Isadore

A ride described in Let's Go Biking

How we describe routes →

Easy Smooth surfaces and gentle climbing.

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 →

The North Star and Chief Isadore rail trails connect Kimberley, Cranbrook, and Wardner in the East Kootenay, ridden in pieces from 6.5 km or end to end at 72 km. Easy, nearly flat, family-friendly riding through forest and wildflowers on historic rail grade, with wildlife commonly spotted along the way.

Get the book from Let's Go Biking →

Where this ride goes#

Approximate lineGet the real route ↗

Map key & layers

Show stops Mute other bike trails

Food & DrinkAttractionsSuppliesAccommodationBike Services

Riding near fast trafficFastest stretches

Dashed line = our rough sketch of where the ride goes. The rideable route lives at get the book from Let's Go Biking.

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 16 km of Crowsnest Highway · near Mayook

☕Stops worth stopping for54 along this route

Canadian Museum of Rail Travel: Restored Trans-Canada Limited railcars and fossil galleries at the Cranbrook History Centre. · Cranbrook

Communities along this route#

Cranbrook 49 Kimberley 5

Cranbrook (49)

Canadian Museum of Rail TravelInfo· Museum / Gallery · $$

Mount Baker HotelInfo· Hotel / Motel · $$$ · Mid-range

The Heidout Restaurant & BrewhouseInfo· Brewery / Pub · $$ · Casual

Cancun Mexican International RestaurantInfo· Restaurant · $$ · Casual

Cranbrook Public LibraryInfo· Library · Free

Days Inn by Wyndham Cranbrook Conference CentreInfo· Hotel / Motel · $$ · Budget

Family Thai RestaurantInfo· Restaurant · $$ · Casual

Funhogz Gear ExchangeInfo· Repair Shop

Great Canadian Liquor WarehouseInfo· Liquor Store

Heritage Inn Hotel & Convention CentreInfo· Hotel / Motel · $$$ · Mid-range

Plus the fast-food chains — A&W, Booster Juice, Boston Pizza +11 more

+25 more in Cranbrook →

Kimberley (5)

Kimberley Aquatic CentreInfo· Community Centre · $

Kimberley Community GardenInfo· Park / Nature · Free

Kimberley KitchenInfo· Restaurant · $ · Cheap eats

2 J's CafeInfo· Restaurant · $$ · Casual

Save-On-FoodsInfo· Grocery Store

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 allCranbrook

Getting to this ride, bike and all#

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

Kimberleybest: bus
Vancouverbest: bus
Victoriabest: ferry + train + bus
Nanaimobest: ferry + SkyTrain + bus

Also on the bike-transit map: Kimberley

Or pick any two places on To & Fro →

🪶Traditional territories

This route travels through the traditional territories of the Cayuse, Umatilla and Walla Walla, Ĩyãħé Nakón mąkóce (Stoney), and Ktunaxa ɁamakɁis.

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

Ready to ride it?

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