How unique is Summerland's Kettle Valley Steam Railway in BC?
All aboard! The historic Kettle Valley Steam Railway in Summerland has delighted train enthusiasts and history buffs from near and far for three decades.
Steam locomotive #3716 hisses and puffs along a 16 kilometre stretch of preserved track pulling a string of vintage passenger cars passed vineyards and canyons.
“You pick from two types of cars, either one of our 1940s vintage enclosed coaches from the Royal Hudson or open-air cars that are converted cattle cars with bus-style seating,” said station host Sorsha Perry. “Open air is the most popular.”
Passengers listen to a historical commentary while enjoying the views before pausing on the Trout Creek Trestle Bridge built in 1915 at 238 feet above the canyon floor.
After returning to the station, passengers can take photographs with the conductor and meet the brakeman.
“People come from around the world to take the train,” Perry said. “There are many repeat visitors and some people come ride the train for the whole day every year.”
She couldn’t provide iNFOnews.ca with a rough number of annual visitors.
There are not a lot of places in BC to experience the thrill of riding on a steam train.
There are 58 steam locomotives in the province with the vast majority on display at museums. A handful of the relics are sunk in rivers and lakes, abandoned or put into storage.
The few actively operating include The Little Prince, a wood-burning steam engine that runs on a 2.2-kilometre-long track at the Fort George Railway in Prince George and the No. 7 Baldwin steam locomotive that chugs along the waterfront in Port Alberni.
Tourists can take gas powered train rides at the BC Forest Discovery Centre in Duncan. There is a steam train there, however, it is currently out of operation. The #1077 Steam Locomotive at the Fort Steele near Cranbrook used to take visitors on tours but is not currently running.
In Kamloops, a massive effort to return steam locomotive #2141 to the tracks has been underway for roughly a year. The Spirit of Kamloops Tour made its inaugural trip around the city in 2002 but has been parked since 2020.
It takes a lot of maintenance work, volunteers and funding to keep a steam locomotive operating.
“It takes a lot of maintenance from our crew and this year we replaced all the wheels on our engines so that was a big task,” Perry in Summerland said. “Ticket sales help with the costs and we get lots of donations. We also do a 50/50 draw to raise funds for maintenance on the engine.”
Members of the Kamloops Heritage Railway have been doing maintenance, safety inspections and tests on their locomotive in recent months, with plans to create a world class hospitality ride from Kamloops to Vernon with stops at towns along the way.
Kettle Valley Steam Railway tours run at 9 a.m. and 12 p.m., Thursday through Monday until Sept. 1, and at 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Saturday through Monday from Sept. 2 to Oct. 13.
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