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Shared itinerary · West Kootenay, British Columbia

Kootenay hot springs loop in 3 days

Three days on the hot springs loop through BC’s West Kootenay: Nelson’s heritage main street, the cave pools at Ainsworth and the sternwheeler at Kaslo, then the ghost town of Sandon, the Nikkei Internment Memorial Centre and the pools at Nakusp and Halcyon, then the free ferry across Upper Arrow Lake to Revelstoke. 11 stops with times and notes. Rooms along the lakes are few, so book Kaslo and Halcyon early for summer.

Updated

Distance

296 km

Baker Street → Grizzly Plaza

Days

3

Stops

11

Each day of Kootenay hot springs loop in 3 days: route, stops and distance
DayRouteStopsDistance
Day 1Baker Street to SS Moyie National Historic Site476.0 km
Day 2Sandon to Halcyon Hot Springs4136 km
Day 3Upper Arrow Lake Ferry to Grizzly Plaza383.8 km

Day 1: Baker Street to SS Moyie National Historic Site

76.0 km

Nelson, then north along Kootenay Lake to Kaslo for the night.

  1. 10:00

    Baker Street

    Sight

    Nelson’s main street, with more than 350 restored heritage buildings from the silver rush years.

    202 m · 5m walk to next

  2. 12:00

    Oso Negro Café

    Food & drink

    Nelson’s coffee roaster and café, with a garden out back.

    50.3 km · 50m drive to next

  3. 14:00

    Ainsworth Hot Springs

    Activity

    A horseshoe-shaped cave of hot mineral water dripping from the ceiling, then the big pool over Kootenay Lake.

    25.6 km · 20m drive to next

  4. 17:00

    SS Moyie National Historic Site

    Sight

    The oldest intact passenger sternwheeler in the world, on Kaslo’s waterfront since she retired in 1957.

Day 2: Sandon to Halcyon Hot Springs

136 km

Highway 31A over to the Slocan Valley, then up to the Arrow Lakes and two more pools.

  1. 09:30

    Sandon

    Sight

    A silver rush ghost town up a creek off Highway 31A, home to 5,000 people at its peak. The museum tells it.

    13.6 km · 20m drive to next

  2. 11:00

    Nikkei Internment Memorial Centre

    Sight

    New Denver’s memorial to the internment of Japanese Canadians in the 1940s, in the original shacks and a garden.

    53.2 km · 45m drive to next

  3. 13:30

    Nakusp Hot Springs

    Activity

    Two pools in the woods up a creek from town, run by the village.

    37.7 km · 35m drive to next

  4. 17:00

    Halcyon Hot Springs

    Stay

    A resort on Upper Arrow Lake with hot, warm and cold pools. Stay the night and soak after dark.

Day 3: Upper Arrow Lake Ferry to Grizzly Plaza

83.8 km

Across Upper Arrow Lake by ferry and on to Revelstoke.

  1. 09:30

    Upper Arrow Lake Ferry

    Activity

    Free, about 20 minutes from Galena Bay to Shelter Bay, running roughly every hour through the day.

    64.2 km · 1h drive to next

  2. 11:30

    Meadows in the Sky Parkway

    Park & nature

    A 26 km switchback road to the top of Mount Revelstoke, then a shuttle or a walk to the summit meadows, best from late July into August.

    3.7 km · 30m drive to next

  3. 15:30

    Grizzly Plaza

    Sight

    The middle of downtown Revelstoke, with free music on summer evenings.