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You are here: Home / Canada / British Columbia / Kinsol Trestle on Vancouver Island

Kinsol Trestle on Vancouver Island

October 21, 2017 By Pat Williams

Fall at the kinsol trestle

If your goal is to travel the Trans-Canada Trail from one side of the country to the other, then at some point you’ll come across the Kinsol Trestle on Vancouver Island, but for most of us, it’s easiest to access from Shawnigan Lake.

Kinsol trestle trail

There are two entry points to access the trestle. From the south on Glen Eagles Road and a little further out on Renfrew Road. There is plenty of parking near the Glen Eagles Road entrance. We went in from the north via Riverside Road which was a beautiful fall drive.

View of trail and kinsol trestle

Both ways require a bit of walking, although the trestle is closer to the Riverside entrance. Once you arrive at the trestle there can be plenty more walking down to the river and then along the Jack Fleetwood Trail which follows the Koksilah River for about 1 Km or .6 miles.

Hike near kinsol trestle

Take a picnic lunch as there are several picnic tables alongside of the trestle.

Kinsol trestle and picnic table

The Kinsol Trestle was put in use in 1920 when it was built for the purpose of moving logging trains across the Kiksilah River with plans to extend the rail line from Victoria to Nootka Sound. The Canadian Northern Pacific Railway hired engineers to design the 614 foot span of track and it was built by local farmers and loggers. The Canadian Western Logging Company also invested in the trestle construction. Trains used the track until 1979.

Side of kinsol trestle with fall tree

The trestle eventually fell into disrepair until Provincial Government and local businesses spent millions to rehabilitate the structure for its historic value and preserved its future as a hiking, cycling, equestrian and walking trail.

Kinsol trestle   handle dripping with water

The spectacular Kinsol Trestle is considered the tallest timber train trestle in the Commonwealth (consisting of 52 sovereign states), and one of the largest in the world at 144 feet high.

Pat and her dad on kinsol trestle

Filed Under: British Columbia, Canada Tagged With: BRITISH COLUMBIA, KINSOL TRESTLE, SHAWNIGAN LAKE, TRAIN TRESTLE, TRANS-CANADA TRAIL, Vancouver Island

Pat Williams

CyberCletch Founder, Team Builder, Tech Lover, Social Media Communicator, Driven Explorer, Blogger, Compassionate Entrepreneur, Dormant Realtor, Mother, Balance Seeker. This is my personal blog. You can also find me on my other blogs: CyberCletch LLC - YOUR Marketing Management Team, Linked In and Instagram

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Pat Williams @Cletch

Adventurer, explorer, entrepreneur, mother to two brilliant young men. Travels and works full-time from an RV. Home is where the heart is and my heart is looking forward to the next hike…

My other sites:

CyberCletch.com, CanadianaConnection.com, GoRealCoaching.com

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