In the late 1800s, early explorers in interior British Columbia discovered gold in the mountains near Rossland. A gold rush ensued, giving birth to the Dewdney trail and a scattering of gold rush towns.
You’ll find your own gold on our Ultimate BC trip — golden sunsets over spectacular vistas, the town of Golden and its incredible shuttle runs, that ‘golden feeling’ upon completion of the epic Seven Summits trail and its multiple hours of challenging alpine bliss. This trip is for the true mountain bike nut — multiple days of riding our handpicked selection of interior BC’s finest trails. Fernie and its massive trail network. Rossland’s incredible views. New Denver’s remote, little-known trails. Revelstoke’s Mount MacPherson area. Golden and the spectacular Mount 7 and Moonraker trails. The beautiful Horseshoe/G8 loops in Canmore, and top it off with Jewell Pass in Kananaskis.
Is This Ride For You?
This Ride is for advanced Riders, with the fitness to conquer some big days of pedalling, multiple days in a row. You don’t mind a big climb if it’s going to get you a spectacular view and an amazing downhill. You can climb up to 1,000 vertical metres in a day at a moderate pace, and can handle technical terrain such as roots, rocks and obstacles. A little exposure is no biggie for you. You like to ride hard and come back to a nice hot shower , post-ride beverage and a delicious meal, with all the fine details taken care of.
Itinerary
Day 1. Welcome to the Rockies!
Our private shuttle will meet you at the Calgary International Airport and drive the group to our lodge in Fernie.
Upon arrival (typically between 8:00 — 8:30 pm), we encourage you to unpack, settle in and rest up for the week of adventure ahead. The lodge will be our home base for the next few days of Fernie trail riding.
Tonight, we’ll dine at The Bridge Bistro and enjoy the patio overlooking the Elk River.
Day 2. Intro to Fernie riding
After a good night’s rest, you’ll awaken to the smell of fresh brewed coffee, with views of the Rockies to accompany our hearty group breakfast at the lodge.
This morning, we’ll review the incredible weeks itinerary and build our bikes. We’ll provide bike stands, tools and helping hands for anyone needing assistance. We’ll spend an hour warming up with some skill review at the amazing local bike park (believe us, there is always something to learn!) and then head off to the Ridgemont area, where a huge spiderweb of trails offer up plenty of options to get this singletrack party started.
After our first ride, it’s back to the lodge for lunch and a short break to get yourself dialed in.
This afternoon, we’ll test out our climbing legs and head up Swine Fly for a super-fun and flowy descent.
Tonight, we’ll head out for a group dinner before heading back to the lodge.
Day 3. Mt. Fernie and the Valley of Island Lake
After breakfast at the lodge, we’ll head out for a big day of true mountain bike adventure, as we aim to conquer Mt. Fernie; the peak looming over us in the North sky.
It’s all leg burn and heavy breathing on Phat Bastard, Mushroom Head, and Lactic Ridge, until you come to the big vistas on the Stupid Traverse, then the ripping descent of Slunt making it all totally worth it. When we hit valley bottom we’ll tackle another climb up the road to Island Lake Lodge for a top quality lunch with unbelievable views.
Afterwards, it’s all downhill on the new Lazy Lizard flow trail, then the choice is yours; cruise back to the lodge or head into the provincial park with the guides for some more adventure.
We guarantee you’ll be satisfied after this day of pedaling.
Enjoy another night at the lodge and suit yourselves with whatever your dinner desires may be.
Day 4. Castle Mountain
After a hearty breakfast at the lodge, we’ll head towards Castle Mountain, stopping first at the skills park for one more quick session.
We’ll then set off for another challenging enduro style ride; as in a BIG climb followed by a HUGE descent! You’ll feel like royalty sitting atop Castle Rock, then we drop in for over 500m of downhill delight on Southern Comfort.
We’ll cruise back to the lodge for a late lunch, following part of the Trans Canada Trail that meanders along the Elk River, then you can kick back for some well deserved R&R.
This afternoon is yours to enjoy off the bike. We love to hang out on the shores of the river with a refreshing beverage, and to JUMP IN on a hot summer day.
Tonight, enjoy another dinner in the town of Fernie or order it in. Perhaps a hot tub and massage are on the menu for you this evening?! This is our last night at the lodge.
Day 5. Road Trip! Fernie to Rossland
This morning, we’ll have one last breakfast at the lodge and pack up the shuttle for a picturesque tour through the southern BC interior.
We’ll head West on the Crowsnest Hwy (following the Old Dewdney trail) and stop in the mountain town of Salmo for lunch.
After a 5‑hour drive through the Rockies, Purcells, and Selkirk Mountain Ranges, we’ll arrive in the town of Rossland, where we’ll check in to our slopeside accommodation and get straight to business.
A massive 650m downhill ride from the ski hill above Rossland, all the way to the next town of Warfield, lies straight out the front door. It starts with a decent warm-up, but don’t worry, we’re saving our climbing legs for tomorrow.
Tonight, we’ll get some good grub in town, kick back at the luxurious condos, and rest up for the massive day ahead.
Day 6. The Seven Summits
We’ll rise and shine in the valleys of Rossland, sip some local brew and the guides will prepare a hearty breakfast.
Today, we’ll conquer a legend. Seven Summits is one of the best trails in Canada, and has recently been voted one of the ‘Top 10 trails in the world.’ The trail is an epic — up to 8 hours — and, like the name suggests, we visit 7 mountain tops in the Rossland area. This is alpine singletrack at its absolute best!
We’ll stop for a picnic lunch at one of many incredible vistas along the route.
We’ll head back to Rossland for some recovery food, celebratory brews and a good night of rest.
Day 7. Nelson, New Denver and Slocan Lake
The guides will whip up another delicious breakfast, then we’ll head off to the super cool hippy town of Nelson.
Situated in the Selkirk range, on the shores of Kootenay Lake, not far from the Kokanee Glacier — Nelson is one of the prettiest towns in all of British Columbia. There will be some free time to enjoy the sights and sounds around town, then we’ll grab lunch on Main Street, before finishing the journey to the isolated hamlet of New Denver, hidden deep in the Slocan Valley.
Today’s ride is an ultimate treat. We are stoked to bring you to a new world class downhill flow trail called “Butter” above Rosebery Provincial Park. We’ll shuttle to the top of this one, then embark on a glorious descent.
Finishing directly at our fantastic accommodation for the night, a beautiful home and guest house at the bottom of the trail, where our hosts will prepare a locally sourced organic meal to suit our finest pleasures. This dinner is on us. Bon appetit.
Day 8. Sweet Slocan Singletrack
Our hosts will serve up a scrumptious breakfast, then we’ll get packed up and ready for riding.
New Denver is a jewel of the Kootenays: a charming mountain town surrounded by massive peaks, on the shore of a spectacular lake.
We’ll take you along the historic Galena mining trail, over a cable car crossing to the abandoned train station of Alamo Siding, up Idaho Peak, down the old school freeride trail called Choices, and out the steep hillside traverse of Old Sandon Road.
This ride concludes on the shore of Slocan Lake, where you WILL be peer pressured to get in the water. After a cool-down dip and a beverage by the lake, we’ll hit one of the cute little New Denver cafes for lunch.
Once all topped up, we’ll carry on to Halcyon Hot Springs Village and check in to some amazing cottages by the water. Time to unwind at this incredible resort and take a bask in “some of the most restorative hot spring waters you will find in North America”.
Tonight, we have dinner reservations at the Kingfisher Restaurant, featuring a spectacular mountain view across Upper Arrow Lake, and a dining experience you won’t soon forget.
Day 9. Ferry to Shelter Bay & Mt. MacPherson, Revelstoke
You might want to get up before breakfast this morning, head down to the lakeside, and spend a few moments on one of the most beautiful pebble beaches you can imagine. We’ll enjoy breakfast at the Kingfisher Lounge, then load up to catch the beautiful ferry ride across Upper Arrow Lake and continue north towards Revelstoke.
The Mt. Macpherson area offers up a huge variety of top quality riding, from super tech to super flow. We’ll start with the East side and get down to the Columbia River, looping back to the van for lunch.
Then we’ll get rad on the West side trails including TNT and Flowdown. These are mind blowing fun through naturally rich forest environments. You know — the hyper green moss, moisture, giant trees and roots that you see in all those mountain bike videos?! This is Revy riding.
After an incredibly satisfying day, we’ll make the short drive to The Glacier House Log Cabins, hoses and hot tubs waiting.
Clean up, relax, and then we’ll cruise into Revelstoke for dinner and a few drinks!
Day 10. Road Trip Through Roger’s Pass & Golden Trails
A continental breakfast will be ready and waiting at the Glacier House Restaurant.
After breakfast, we’ll pack up and head into town for a little walk-about. There are bike shops abound for those who need to replace a part, grab a new jersey or just simply window shop.
We’ll grab some ice cream on our way out of town for the 2‑hour drive east to Golden via the spectacular Trans Canada Hwy through Mount Revelstoke National Park, and Roger’s Pass of Glacier National Park.
We’ll stop in Golden for lunch, then it’s on to Mt. 7 for a MASSIVE SHUTTLE DROP! You won’t believe the view. Paragliders take off for world class flying from this very spot, and you can peek down the start of the legendary Red Bull Psychosis race track too. How cool is that?!
We’ll take a less deadly path down the mountain, then hook into the new Mountain Shadows trail network for a twisty, technical, all-mountain pedal.
We’ll spend the next 2 nights at our deluxe, yes, we mean deluxe, lodge near the base of Kicking Horse Ski Resort, where we can take advantage of the massive kitchen to do a home cooked group dinner, or head to the resort restaurant just down the road. The ‘lush’ accommodations, as they are appropriately referred to, might be a little over the top for a bunch of dirty bikers on a road trip, but by this point in the trip, you’ll welcome a little swank.
Day 11. Vistas and Valleys
After breakfast, we’ll hop on our bikes and leave right from the front door of our lodge in Golden.
We’ll hit up the CBT/Moonraker trails today and log some more quality mileage. Many have claimed this area to be their favourite of the trip, as it sports tonnes of superb singletrack through cedar and fir forests with stunning views of the Columbia River Basin and Canyon Creek.
Expect some exposure at the canyon’s rim, some technical rooty sections, plenty of spontaneous climbs and super-fun downhills.
Today, we’ll enjoy lunch in town and time chilling out at one of the local cafes. There’s usually another option for a mostly downhill ride in the afternoon if anyone still has the gas for it, rest assured, the guides will always go if people are keen.
The communal dinner is a tradition back at the Grand Lodge on this night.
We’ll spend the next 2 nights at our deluxe, yes, we mean deluxe, lodge near the base of Kicking Horse Ski Resort, where we can take advantage of the massive kitchen to do a home cooked group dinner, or head to the resort restaurant just down the road. The ‘lush’ accommodations, as they are appropriately referred to, might be a little over the top for a bunch of dirty bikers on a road trip, but by this point in the trip, you’ll welcome a little swank.
Day 12. Golden Grins
After a hearty breakfast prepared by the guides, we’ll pack the trailer, then gear up for a day of DH at Kicking Horse Resort!
Definitely a big-grin day with some major vertical descent and technical delights on offer! Even if you don’t consider yourself much of a downhiller, this is a key part of the Ultimate BC experience. The gondola ride, the vistas, the never ending flow… oh, it’s so good. Just like the ski hill, runs vary from green to double black. We generally lean toward the blues.
And, to top it off, we’ll do lunch at 7,700 ft.
After a morning of thrills, we’ll load up the shuttle and head off for the 2hr drive east.
We’ll make a 45 min stop in Banff so everyone can get their “tourist” fix, then proceed to Canmore to check into our hotel.
Tonight, we’ll head out on the town for our final dinner together.
Day 13. The Cherry on Top
We’ll wake up in Canmore, grab breakfast in town, and pick up a picnic lunch for later.
It’s about 40 minutes to the Barrier Lake Dam in Kananaskis Country. This is the start point for the incredible, amazing, scintillating and stunning Prairie View/Jewel Pass trail, and the finish point of our riding together…we won’t cry as long as you don’t cry, ok?
This super fun and scenic ride starts with a 6 km gravel road climb to a short hike-a-bike section near the top of Barrier Mountain. The sweet panoramic view of the surrounding mountains, prairies, and rivers will make it all worth it. We’ll be rewarded with a super-fast and technical descent down Jewel Pass, an incredibly fun and challenging piece of singletrack, looping us back to the parking lot.
Final high fives are handed out, then it’s time to pack up bikes. We’ll load up the shuttle and finish the journey back to Calgary.
We can drop you off at the Calgary International Airport or at the Acclaim Hotel Calgary Airport.
You’ll be in a daze as we take you back to the place where it all started. Did that just happen? Is it really possible to have that much fun in 13 days?
Only one way to find out…