Welcome
Aboard.
The East Kootenay is a bike packing paradise. With few people and a metric tonne of remote backcountry wilderness generously sprinkled with resource roads. Throw in the grandeur of the “Kootenay Rockies,” add a lot of bears and mix in some gnarly ORV trails to link the major drainages together, and you have all the ingredients necessary for some memorable escapades by bicycle.
JUMBO. |
Dumbo. |
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The grand depart is again in Cranbrook, but now the route travels to the west on the North Star Rail Trail, a beautiful, paved 28km bicycle path linking Cranbrook with the City of Kimberley. From there, it's time to turn north and head into the foothills of the Purcell mountains, the beginning of the gravel, and the start of the real adventure.
The Purcells are going to kick your ass. It is as simple as that, and we feel completely comfortable with the bravado that statement implies. If your jaw isn't dropping because you are out of breath and feeling completely beaten while dragging your bicycle up The Brewer Creek Trail (which is a mandatory hike-a-bike), then it surely will as you top out, soak up your surroundings and contemplate the 1000m singletrack descent that spills into the bike park at Panorama. If you are like me, then it is at this point that you limp into the T-Bar and Grill, order a beer, and seriously question the punishment you have signed up for. By the time you hit the 24hr Tim Horton's outside of Invermere I guarantee that you will have a new appreciation for backcountry cycling in the Purcells. A short diversion on the paved rural roads through the Windermere valley and a quick rip on the amazing singletrack of The Spirit Trail will finally deliver you to the Rocky Mountains. The trip south through the Rockies back to Cranbrook offers several hilly and circuitous detours culminating in the crossing of Wildhorse Pass. Along the way you will be able to avail yourself of the services in Fairmont Hot Springs, Fort Steele, and Bull River. The 17km of "enhanced singletrack on the new Chief Isadore Trail is the most recent addition to the East Kootenay's bike packing playbook and a real treat, enabling you to savour the last few kilometres of pedalling before arriving back in Cranbrook. |
There is a new route for the 2019 Dumbo. This year we are taking you deep into the Purcell Mountains south of Cranbrook on a 302km journey across the headwaters of the Yahk and Moyie Rivers. The route begins and ends with a generous helping of singletrack, and in between tackles no less than 8 burley ascents. The Hamlet of Yahk, BC is situated a little under the half way mark and provides an opportunity to take in some ice cream and other important fuel before heading north and back up into the mountains. Of course, an elephant wouldn't really be lost if there wasn't at least some time spent stumbling around in the woods, and so we have maintained tradition and included an obligatory bushwhack section as part of this year's route. The 2019 Dumbo turns it up a notch and builds upon the 'weekend of adventure' that was established in 2018.
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These fine organizations believe in us:
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