Vision for Okanagan railbed expands

Saturday, December 20, 2014 8:27 pm | Updated: 8:33 pm.  Don Plant Penticton Herald
A Shuswap band hopes to lead construction of a public trail from Sicamous to Armstrong after buying two sections of railbed abandoned by Canadian Pacific. The Secwepemc Nation has acquired 11.7 hectares of the discontinued railway in a deal signed last week. The right-of-way passes through two reserves by Mara Lake and Enderby. Chief Wayne Christian plans to meet with municipal leaders in the new year with a view to acquire the remaining sections of the 60-kilometre corridor. Ideally, if we can come to an agreement, it’s got to be preserved as a trail,” he said Saturday. “It’s got long-term potential for tourism. . . . We can help revitalize our culture and our connection back to the land.” CP abandoned the rail line about five years ago. The Splatsin people, the southernmost tribe of the Shuswap Nation, sued the company for lack of consultation and ended up negotiating the land deal out of court.  The purchase (for an undisclosed amount) gives the band a 1.5-kilometre section of railbed south of Sicamous along the shores of Mara Lake and a six-kilometre stretch south of Enderby. Supporters of a continuous greenway corridor for hiking and cycling are delighted. The band has re-established its role as primary caretaker in the region and opened the door for new uses that benefit tourism and transportation, said Phil McIntyre-Paul, executive director of the Shuswap Trail Alliance. “We’re quite excited,” he said. “The trail alliance mandate is to establish infrastructure that gets people outside — active and walking, cycling and mobile by non-motorized means.” Okanagan municipalities agreed earlier this month to buy the Vernon-Kelowna rail corridor from Canadian National for $22 million. The 48-kilometre corridor covers 138 hectares. CN operates the middle section from Vernon to Armstrong, which is still active. Assuming northern municipalities acquire the Sicamous-to-Armstrong line — the value is estimated at less than $6 million — people could eventually cycle from Sicamous to the Okanagan corridor by taking another route from Armstrong to Vernon, said McIntyre-Paul. “The back roads are quite beautiful cycling routes. . . . We could create a signed route through the back roads and reconnect in Vernon.” The Sicamous-to-Armstrong section is peppered with ancient village sites, fishing weirs and other archeological settings that date back thousands of years, said Christian. When CP built the railbed, it had an environmental impact on salmon habitat, he said. The band may build trenches or canals to allow fish to pass through the right-of-way, which is 30 metres wide. “We have a real interest in the fish because that’s how we feed our people,” he said. The chief is uncomfortable with motorized vehicles using the corridor because of the liability risk and the easy access ATVs or cars would have to private property. Christian and the band council meet with CP officials in the coming weeks. Afterward, he plans to start discussions with representatives of Sicamous, Enderby, Armstrong, Spallumcheen, Salmon Arm, the trail alliance and regional districts of the North Okanagan and Columbia-Shuswap. “It’s a bit complex, but there are things we can do collectively if we come together,” he said.