Rail Trail Construction to begin south of Sicamous
Construction of the Shuswap North Okanagan Rail Trail will be proceeding this spring beginning at Kilometre 1.5 and moving southwards along Mara...
The Rail Trail partners—Splatsin te Secwépemc, the Columbia Shuswap Regional District (CSRD), and the Regional District of North Okanagan (RDNO) would like to inform the public that crews will be performing annual maintenance on constructed and unconstructed sections of the former rail corridor property in the coming weeks.
Scheduled work includes maintaining culverts, bridges and drainage infrastructure, and mowing weeds and brush growth. For unconstructed sections, mowing will be limited to the old rail bed (gravel ballast) where the future trail is to be constructed, as development plans for this corridor include the preservation of as much native vegetation as possible on the surrounding property.
Residents are reminded that only a few sections are currently open for public use, including the trail through Enderby, as well as the areas between km 0.5 and km 4.4 from Sicamous, and km 49.15 and km 50.15 into Armstrong. The Armstrong section is open for use, while access to the Sicamous section is restricted due to the Bruhn Bridge construction and limited trailhead parking on the west side of the Sicamous Narrows.
Skwlax Resource Management Ltd. was recently awarded the construction of the next section of trail between km 4.4 and km 14.8 along Mara Lake south of Sicamous. Construction on this section began earlier this month and is expected to take six weeks.
Construction of the trail for the remaining areas south of Mara Lake is pending Agricultural Land Commission approvals. In June of 2024, rail trail owners agreed to grant easements to farmers who requested them for driveways that cross the trail, however easement language has not been settled yet.
Yucwmenlúcwu (Caretakers of the Land) from Splatsin Development Corporation is overseeing the work.
To stay updated on the progress of the Rail Trail or to donate, visit www.shuswapnorthokanaganrailtrail.ca.
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For media inquiries, please contact:
Ken Barnes, Communications Specialist
Splatsin te Secwépemc
(250) 801-8256 | ken.barnes@splatsin.ca
