Photo: Kari MedigKaslo, BC

The Great Granby Loop

Challenging Demanding on several fronts at once, or a lot of riding on busy 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 475 km, five-to-seven day loop through the West Kootenays from near Castlegar, mapped by Ali Becker and Mat Leblanc. Rail trails, forest service road climbs, and paved connectors through old mining and forestry towns, with a free cable ferry and side trips to hot springs and alpine lakes.

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 & DrinkAttractionsSuppliesCampingAccommodation

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 46 km of Vernon-Slocan Highway · near Slocan
about 21 km of Pass Creek Road · near Pass Creek
about 9 km of Inonoaklin Valley Road · near Edgewood
about 1 km of Union Street · near New Denver
short stretches on other roads · 3 km total

☕Stops worth stopping for74 along this route

Castlegar Museum: Railway and pioneer museum in one of BC's finest surviving Canadian Pacific stations. · Castlegar

Grand Forks (27)

gallery2Info· Museum / Gallery · Free

Grand Forks Aquatic CentreInfo· Community Centre · $

True North DistilleriesInfo· Activity / Experience · $$$

Clyde'sInfo· Brewery / Pub · $$ · Casual

Grand Forks & District Public LibraryInfo· Library · Free

Grand Forks Municipal CampgroundInfo· Public Campground

Grand Forks Station PubInfo· Brewery / Pub · $$ · Casual

Johnny's MotelInfo· Hotel / Motel · $$ · Budget

Omega IIInfo· Restaurant · $$ · Casual

Riverside Court RV & CabinsInfo· Hotel / Motel · $$ · Budget

Plus the fast-food chains — A&W, Panago, Subway +1 more

+13 more in Grand Forks →

New Denver (8)

Centennial CampgroundInfo· Public Campground

Kohan Reflection GardenInfo· Park / Nature · Free

New Denver Visitor CentreInfo· Visitor Centre · Free

Silvery Slocan MuseumInfo· Museum / Gallery · Free

Adventure DomesInfo· Hotel / Motel · $$$ · Mid-range

New Market FoodsInfo· Grocery Store

Valhalla InnInfo· Hotel / Motel · $$$ · Mid-range

Valhalla pureInfo· Outdoor Gear

Castlegar (7)

Castlegar MuseumInfo· Museum / Gallery · Free

Castlegar & District Public LibraryInfo· Library · Free

Chameleon HotelInfo· Hotel / Motel · $$ · Budget

Crumbs BakeryInfo· Bakery / Donuts · $ · Cheap eats

The Grateful TableInfo· Restaurant · $ · Cheap eats

Kootenay MarketInfo· Grocery Store

Plus the fast-food chains — Subway

Nakusp (6)

Leland on the Lake RestaurantInfo· Restaurant · $$ · Casual

Bella SoriahInfo· Restaurant · $$ · Casual

Mountain Top CoffeeInfo· Café / Coffee · $ · Cheap eats

Studio Connexion Art GalleryInfo· Museum / Gallery · Free

CancoInfo· Convenience Store

Leland HotelInfo· Hotel / Motel · $$ · Budget

Christina Lake (4)

Christina Lake Welcome CentreWelcoming· Café / Coffee · $ · Cheap eats

Lakeview MotelInfo· Hotel / Motel · $$ · Budget

Portly Penguin PizzaInfo· Restaurant · $$ · Casual

TempoInfo· Convenience Store

Slocan (4)

Lemon Creek Pioneer CampgroundInfo· Hotel / Motel · $ · Rock-bottom

Mountain ValleyInfo· Convenience Store

Slocan Community LibraryInfo· Library · Free

Springer Creek RV Park & CampgroundInfo· Public Campground

Crescent Valley (3)

Frog Peak Café & GuesthouseWelcoming· Café / Coffee · $ · Cheap eats

EssoInfo· Convenience Store

EverGreenInfo· Convenience Store

Lemon Creek (2)

Lemon Creek Pioneer CampgroundInfo· Private Campground

Silverton (2)

Camp CaféWelcoming· Café / Coffee · $ · Cheap eats

Silverton Campground - LakesideInfo· Public Campground

Winlaw (2)

Sleep Is For SissiesInfo· Restaurant · $$ · Casual

Fomi's BakeryInfo· Bakery / Donuts · $ · Cheap eats

Arrow Park (1)

McDonald Creek Provincial CampgroundInfo· Public Campground

Box Lake (1)

Wilson Lake EastInfo· Public 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 allCastlegar

Getting to this ride, bike and all#

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

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

Or pick any two places on To & Fro →

🪶Traditional territories

This route travels through the traditional territories of the Cayuse, Umatilla and Walla Walla, Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, Ĩyãħé Nakón mąkóce (Stoney), Ktunaxa ɁamakɁis, Secwepemcúl’ecw (Secwépemc), snʕickstx tmxʷúlaʔxʷ (Sinixt), sx̌ʷyʔiɬp (Colville), 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 →