The Regional District of Central Kootenay has received more funds for recreational trail building at Morning Mountain.
The Trans Canada Trail granted the funds last month and the Nelson Cycling Club will continue to be the steward for the project as they build the trails. The Nelson Cycling Club’s Joel McBurney said a few things need to fall into place before it becomes a reality, but he considers it promising.
The trail is being developed by the club and Recreation Sites and Trails BC in coordination with the RDCK which manages the recreation facility at the base of Morning Mountain.
McBurney said the Trans Canada Trail has adopted the trails known as Bottoms Up and Upper Bottoms as part of its route and approximately $12,000 of the total will be allocated to cover work done this season to complete Upper Bottoms.
The majority of the funds will go towards building 4.5 km of a new machine-built trail that will be rideable both ways, extending southeasterly from the top of Upper Bottoms at the nine km mark on Giveout Creek forest service road, exiting at the six kilometre marker.
According to McBurney, preliminary layout for the trail is underway, with the goal of beginning construction this fall and completion next summer.
“We anticipate using a small machine, so a footprint of 36 to 48 inches (90 to 120 cm) wide, with a hand crew shaping and detailing it to a smooth finished product, doable for all skill levels.”
The Trans Canada Trail routing then follows the Giveout Creek forest service road to reach Cottonwood Lake Regional Park and the Nelson-Salmo Great Northern Trail.
To date, construction has cost approximately $10,000 per kilometre. The largest expense is wages and excavator rental at $3,600 per month.
Regional district planner Mark Crowe said the eventual goal is to connect the regional recreational areas and parks of Morning Mountain, Cottonwood Park and the Nelson-Salmo Great Northern Trail. This will reduce the length of the Trans Canada Trail which is currently routed on Giveout Creek Rd. and would mean the Salmo trail is part of the main trail rather than a spur.