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Great Granby

  • Writer: Bob Dalton
    Bob Dalton
  • Aug 9
  • 12 min read

The Great Granby is a wonderful loop in the Kootenay Mountains of BC created by Ali Becker and Mat Leblanc. Many thanks to them for their work! We rode the route in the opposite direction to how it is shown on bikepack.ca - in other words we rode it counter clockwise which enabled not only a nice flat start to the route but also finishing with a long downhill back into Castlegar. We were happy with our choice and I'll try to highlight why at the appropriate moments. We completed the route in 7 days (June 17 to 23 2026) which gave us plenty of time to enjoy some great camp spots, long gentle days with many lake and creek swims.


This entire area is geographically beautiful and interesting. There are three large lakes running north-south with mountain ranges between each. Kootenay Lake on the east is a natural lake but it's level has been managed by a dam since the 1930s, The Upper and Lower Arrow Lakes on the west were created by damming the Columbia River with the Hugh Keenleyside Dam, built near Castlegar in 1968 for power generation, and between those two is the Slocan Lake which is a natural lake.




Here are the summary stats for the trip:

  • Distance: 489km

  • Climbing: 5,950m

  • Riding Time: 33.5 hours (14.6 kph)

  • Sum of Daily Elapsed Time: 61.25 hours

    • That makes an actual average speed of 8.0 kph and a sum of the daily non-riding time of 27.8 hours. In other words this trip can be done a lot faster, but why would one do that? I loved riding this way.


  • Link to my Strava

  • 6 hours riding time (15.5 kph)

  • 10.5 hours elapsed time (8.9 kph) - lots of time relaxing! : )


My Rig



This was my first trip on my Salsa Timberjack. Loved it! Her name is Pepper.


  • Shimano Deore XT 12 speed with 30T front chainring with 10-51 cassette

  • 2.4" Vittoria Mezcal tires front and back - love them.

  • Tailfin Rear Rack with Tailfin Rack Top Bag and two 10L Tailfin mini paniers

  • Tailfin 2.2L Top Tube Bag

  • Old Man Mountain Axle Pack rack mounts on the front forks holding two 10L Tailfin Mini Paniers

  • Tailfin Bar Cage with Apidura Expedition Handlebar Bag and 4L Backcountry Accessory Pocket.

  • Apidura Expedition 1.3L Cargo pack on the downtube (tools)

  • Apidura 7L Frame Pack

  • One 650ml standard water botte to the down tube using a Zefal Gizmo Universal Mount (these are great - you can find them on Amazon)

  • The rest of my water I carried in a 2L bladder in a small backpack.

  • Bar Ends added to my standard flat bar.

  • Gemini headlight (was handy for the tunnels but not really needed - a simple headlamp would do)

  • Garmin 840


Day 0 - Drive to Castlegar


I started the day early to drive from home in Burnaby to Castlegar. The drive was uneventful and I arrived with plenty of time to explore the pretty town of Castlegar; known mostly as a mill town but to my eye it looks like a great place to live! I checked out the former home of Sean Edwards maternal grandparents (see photo), rode some nice bike paths and looked at all the amazing sculptures and visited Zuckerberg Island - all time very well spent.


We camped the night at the privately own Pass Creek Campground; it is clean, well kept with great facilities and very nice staff. They also allowed us to leave our vehicles there for the week for $10 per night which gave us a lot of piece of mind.





Day 1: Castlegar to Bannoc Point on Slocan Lake (93km, 800m climbing)

  • Link to my Strava

  • 6 hours riding time (15.5 kph)

  • 10.5 hours elapsed time (8.9 kph) - lots of time relaxing! : )


Yoel, Havi, John, Liz and I started our journey on a beautiful morning with a combination of paved and very nice gravel leading to our first stop at Frog Peak Cafe - an excellent place for a coffee and a snack that looks like it had amazing breakfasts as well though we didn't partake. I definitely need to go back!


From there the route follows the Slocan Rail Trail which is a wonderfully gentle and well maintained trail along the Slocan River where we had our second major stop of the day at a swimming hole on the river just beyond Winslow. After passing through Slocan the route follows what I assume is still the old railway and just outside of Slocan there is a tricky spot that forced us to removed all our bags and help each other lift our bikes across and through a rockfall followed by a short tunnel.


I should say that we had intended to spend the night somewhere near Slocan but everyone was enjoying the riding so much and the mood was joyous so we kept going. The benefit of this decisions was some additional beautiful riding and excellent camp sites at Bannoc point but it was also too far for John and Liz who, although experienced bikepackers, had not done a lot of riding recently and very sore knees was the result. We have all experienced making that mistake - especially those of us over 60!



  • Gorgeous morning departing Castlegar
  • Frog Peak Cafe - Awesome.
  • Slocan Rail Trail
  • First Swim Break on the Slocan River
  • Where are we? Slocan Rail Trail...still
  • Columbia Tiger Lily
  • Yoel, John Havi and Liz
  • Slocan
  • Tricky Spot
  • On the road again
  • Bit of climbing to end the day
  • Slocan Lake
  • Bannoc Point Rec Site
  • Bannoc Point
  • Great spots!




Day 2: Bannoc Point to Big Wilson Lake, East Campsite (53km, 1,000m climbing)


After a relaxing breakfast we faced the steep hike-a-bike back up to the road from the Bannoc Point camp sites. It's not too bad and very well worth the effort but John and Liz decided, wisely, to slowly return to Castlegar and rest their weary knees. I was sad to see them go - the one day we had together was a wonderful experience.


The riding today was all excellent - most of it on the Nakusp and Slocan Railway Trail passing through Sliverton and New Denver where there are resupply options and I recommend taking the time to visit the Nikkei Internment Memorial Center in New Denver which commemorates the internment of Japanese during WWII - Canadian Citizens!


We stopped to lunch and a swim at Beaver Lake - there is a BC Rec campground there that is quite nice but the mosquitoes were pretty bad and it was still early in the day so we continued on. We camped at the east end of Big Wilson Lake. The official campground there is small with very little privacy but if you venture through the trees and rocks just a bit west of the campground there are great tent spots with lots of privacy.



  • Passing through Silverton
  • New Denver
  • Climbing to Beaver Lake
  • Swim at Beaver Lake - was a very hot day.
  • Arriving at Big Wilson
  • Campsite at Big Wilson

Day 3: Wilson Lake to Kootenay Born Camping near Arrow Park (48km, 690m climbing)


We were up at 6am with blue skies and rolling at 8. There is a very tough climb - steep and loose - immediately on departing the Wilson Lake East Campground. I tried to be a hero and ride it, which I did but I paid for it badly. I was coughing for the rest of the day - I think pushing that hard with any warm-up at all blew out a bunch of alveoli in my lungs. We agreed though that we would rather have gone up that hill than down it - our first confirmation that we made a good call with choosing counter-clockwise. (Though I think there may be some confirmation bias happening!) Once the climbing is done it is a very easy and beautiful ride on the Nakusp to Summit Lake Rail line all the way into Nakusp. I made a solo and ill advised detour to take a look at Wilson Lake West Campground - the road to the campground plunges down from the main road and is very rough. I'm not sure it was worth it but I can report there is one (only one) nice camp spot there (see photos) so if you are lucky enough to be there on your own it would be a great location to spend a night.


Nakusp is a beautiful town! The main street is beautifully cared for, with lots of gardens and nice shops. We did a bit of resupply and had a long stop at the Mountain Top Cafe - probably 2 hours - to recharge our backup power.


From Nakusp the route follows the highway south along the east side of Arrow Lake but the shoulder is good, the hills are rolling and other than the heat it was a very pleasant section. We stopped at MacDonald Creek Provincial Park for lunch and a swim - I sense a theme. MacDonald Creek Park is very nice - it is super clean and tidy; the staff that we saw were all focused on details of orderliness that I have never seen before! Fantastic to see.


The route takes you from the east side to the west side of Arrow Lake via the Arrow Park cable ferry which runs back and forth continuously as needed - it's free. It is operated by the BC Ministry of Transportation as are all of the inland ferries. They are considered to be part of the highway system unlike the BC Ferries, who operate the coastal ferries, which is a provincial crown corporation.


There is a campground immediately after the cable ferry - Kootenay Born Camping - it is part of the Hip Camp network which I wasn't familiar with prior to this trip but it's like Airbnb for campgrounds. We still had energy and a lot of daylight left but to continue further meant a significant climb in the heat of the afternoon and it was brutally hot so we decided to spend the night there. It was a wise decision. The campground is a big open field but there are several tent pads in a nicely treed area with lots of shade in the back corner - we had it to ourselves. The facilities are great and there is a little trail from the campsite down to the lake which we took full advantage of for another swim before dinner. Havi's chosen topic of conversation for the evening was regret...I regret not starting trips with Yoel and Havi 20 years ago!




  • Morning on Wilson Lake
  • Do we really want to ride this climb?
  • Yes, most of it anyway.
  • Wilson Lake West Rec Site
  • Wilson Lake West Site
  • Is that Frog Peak? I think so.
  • Nakusp to Summit Lake Rail Trail
  • Approaching Nakusp
  • Nakusp
  • Mountain Top Cafe - Oso Negro (Nelson) Coffee!
  • Read about Osprey nests...
  • Saw a nest with babies in it!
  • Macdonald Creek PP
  • MacDonald Creek PP
  • Swimming at Macdonald Creek PP on Arrow Lake
  • Waiting for the Arrow Park Cable Ferry
  • Kootenay Born Camping Entrance
  • Deciding if we should continue or not...
  • Dog Rose (Rosa canina)
  • We decided not to continue!
  • Kootenay Born Campground
  • Tent spots in the trees at Kootenay Born


Day 4: Upper Arrow Lake to Edgewood on Lower Arrow Lake (67km, 1,040m climbing)


In an effort to avoid some of the heat we faced yesterday we were up at 5am today and riding by 645. Today started with a 450m climb that we decided not to tackle yesterday. The start of the climb was gentle and in the cool morning, with lots of butterflies keeping us company, it was not too bad but it does have some very steep pitches and we agreed we were very happy to not have tackled that climb yesterday in the heat.


We stopped for a break at at Richy Rec Site on Whatsham Lake thinking that we would also enjoy another swim but the air was quite cool and there was a bit of wind so we just relaxed for a bit and made a plan to stop at the Hippy Hole. Don't miss the Hippy Hole! It is easy to roll right past as it is not marked other than a small sign on the south side of the bridge that crosses the canyon (Whatsham River) shortly after the south end of Whatsham Lake.


The remainder of the day, from the Hippy Hole to Edgewood is super nice gravel most of it downhill and then 10km of nice paved road - all very enjoyable riding. There is a good campground with excellent facilities including in Edgewood but it is a standard car/RV campground (Edgewood Municipal Campground) so there is considerable noise and not a lot of privacy but for tired bodies it's great. It was still quite early in the day when we arrived at Edgewood but the heat had peaked so we decided to grab a spot in the campground, a swim in the lake (Upper Arrow), and a very relaxed last part of the day. Looking back on today, and speaking with a couple of bikepackers we met in Edgewood heading the other direction, we were happy with our decision to do the route counterclockwise. We agreed the longer climb from Edgemont to the top of the climb from Kootenay Born would have been a tough one and the descent to Kootenay Born is bumpy and loose.



  • Early morning departure from Kootenay Born Campground
  • Hard climb to start the day, glad we started early.
  • Richy Rec Sites on Whatsham Lake
  • Resting at Whatsham Lake - camp spots here looked good.
  • The Hippy Hole! So much fun.
  • Nice pavement into Edgewood
  • Swimming at Upper Arrow Lake (Edgewood)
  • Edgewood General Store
  • Edgewood Campground

Day 5: Edgewood to Lynch Creek (86km, 1,500m climbing)


We were up at 5am again hoping to avoid the heat while we made the 1,000m / 17km climb out of Upper Arrow Lake. It was indeed a tough climb with lots of steep pitches and we were very glad to have done it early in the morning. From the top of the climb all the way to Lynch Creek where we camped it is a 40km descent on nice gravel (Burrell Creek Forest Service Road) with the last 15km on the paved North Fork Road that runs along the beautiful Granby River. We did encounter the occasional l truck but nothing too bad and most of them slowed respectfully for us. Much appreciated.


I should mention that there is a nice wilderness camp site on the Burrell Creek Forest Service Road on the east side of the creek (the side the service road is on) 32 km before the Lynch Creek Sites. This spot is not marked but there is an obvious road and marked on google maps on the west side of the creek is St Anne's Meadow Rec Site. Hope that's helpful.


The primary Lynch Creek Rec Sites were occupied and honestly not particularly nice but if you follow the Lynch Creek Forest Service Road for a couple of hundred meters beyond the main sites there are several additional sites right on the creek that are very nice. As usual we took full advantage of the fresh, cold, clear creek before dinner, a chat and resting up for tomorrow.



  • Morning at Edgewood Campground
  • Climbing out of Edgewood
  • Yes it was this steep! Havi is a beast.
  • The climb continues...
  • Wilderness Site on the Burrell Service Road
  • Wilderness Site mentioned in writeup
  • Burrell Creek Forest Service Road
  • North Fork Road along the Granby River
  • Mock Orange or Indian Arrowwood - beautiful sent
  • Lynch Creek
  • Campsite at Lynch Creek


Day 6: Lynch Creek to somewhere on the C&W Rail Trail beyond Christina Lake (82km, 740m climbing)


What a great day! The air was very cool when we started this morning but the sky was clear and the sun felt good. The ride from Lynch Creek to Grand Forks is a beautiful, paved, gentle downhill that was most enjoyable. We asked a random person in town where to go for coffee and food and were pointed to Pascale's - great recommendation. I had an espresso, two scones and bought 4 oatmeal cookies for the road! The day was forecasted to be very hot, it was, so we loaded up with water before continuing on towards Christina Lake. I carried 4L of water which as it turned out was probably double what I needed as there were several opportunities to refill during this section - but it did lend a feeling of security in the heat to know that I had a lot of water with me.


Starting in Grand Forks the route follows the Columbia and Western Rail Trail which is amazing infrastructure to experience. If you look at the profile for today it looks a bit ugly but the grade is very gentle and steady which makes for very nice riding. The heat was quite intense today so I fashioned a shade for my helmet from the cape from my Outdoor Research hat that worked great - and so stylish.


We camped at a spot right on the trail beside McRea Creek about 2km beyond the Paulson Bridge on the Crowsnest Highway (the trail goes under the bridge). As has become our routine we all fully immersed ourselves in the beautiful cold water of the creek before dinner and off to sleep in preparation for our last day on the road.


  • On the Road to Grand Forks
  • Start of The Columbia and Western Rail Trail
  • Pascale's in Grand Forks - Excellent!
  • On the C&W Rail Trail
  • My MacGuyvered sun shade
  • Kettle River
  • Kettle River
  • Christina Lake in the background

Day 7: Back to Castlegar (60km, 190m climbing)


We started the day 7 kilometers from, and 200m below, from Farron Summit and although the air was cold enough for me to wonder why I didn't bring warm gloves is was a gorgeous morning on a great trail with several interesting points of interest including the Bulldog Tunnel.


There is a good camp spot at the rest stop near the Farron Summit (see pic) but be aware there is no water there though we did see a creek about 1km before the summit.


The descent from Bulldog back to Castlegar is a great road and a wonderful way to end the trip but be aware that there are vehicles on this section of the route. Vehicles are allowed so they are not doing anything wrong but it was surprising to see so you have to stay alert.

We arrived back in Castlegar and headed straight to Pass Creek campground where we left our vehicles and the campground owner/operator kindly let us use the showers before starting our drive home. I'm so glad we did that trip! It was disappointing to lose John and Liz after the first day but I truly enjoyed my time with Havi and Yoel and I look forward to the next trip.


  • Farron Summit - this would be a good spot to camp
  • Bulldog Tunnel (Bulldog Mountain)
  • Descending into Castlegar - Lower Arrow Lake / Columbia River
  • Beautiful Trestle Bridges
  • Approaching Castlegar on the Columbia River

 



 



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