Relive the romance of train travel, as you pick up the Via Rail sevice at Jasper for your overnight journey through the Rockies and onto Vancouver.
Jasper
Mile: 0 Population: 4,265
World-famous for skiing, hiking and outdoor sports, Jasper
attracts tourists from around the world and is said to be among the
country’s most-photographed places. Because Jasper National
Park is a wildlife sanctuary, it is common to see all sorts of wild
animals in their natural habitat. Elk and mule deer often wander
the main street of the town.
Yellowhead Pass
Mile: 17.6
The crest of the Yellowhead Pass is the border between Alberta
and British Columbia and the division between Mountain and
Pacific time zones. The Pass is one of the lowest points in the
entire North American Continental Divide and all water systems
flow either east or west from the Divide.
Mount Robson
Mile: 52
As the highest peak (3,954 metres) in the Rockies, Mount Robson
is easily recognizable and is often referred to as the “Monarch of
the Canadian Rockies” or “The Dome.”
Valemount
Mile: 74 Population: 1,018
Located at the junction of the Rockies and the Caribou, Monashee
and Selkirk mountain ranges, Valemount is a small lumber town
on a long arm of water that was created by the huge Mica Dam
almost 100 kilometres to the south.
Blue River
Mile: 132 Population: 269
The town is home to one of the province’s many heli-skiing outfitters
and is a popular centre for fishing and outdoor adventure.
Points of interest:
Pyramid Falls (mile 113) is briefly visible close to the tracks on
the east side, like a partly collapsed set of rock shelves.
Kamloops
Mile: 0 Population: 92,882
The town began as a trading post in 1812 and became a boomtown
during the Caribou Gold Rush of 1862. The area is a study in
contrasts. Here, the lush forests turn to the rolling hills of the
arid high country scored by deep river canyons, which are fed
by the many high-altitude lakes.
Ashcroft
Mile: 48 Population: 1,664
Very little precipitation annually makes it the “driest town in
Canada.” Here, you can see cactus, sagebrush and the trademark
hoodoos – isolated pinnacles of rock that remain after a hill is
worn away.
Lytton
Mile: 95 Population: 235
This is a tiny town at the junction of the Thompson and Fraser
rivers. Here, the two mighty rivers run side by side in the same
channel.
Boston Bar
Mile: 125
This is the location of Hell’s Gate, the most famous stretch of rapids
in the province where the current is so swift that a fish ladder
was built to help salmon swim upstream to spawn.
Vancouver
Mile: 131 Population: 2,116,581
This city is home to half the population of British Columbia. And
rightly so, given the fantastic setting between the Pacific Coast
and the dark green forests of the Coast Mountains. Here, land is
at a premium and the city skyline of Vancouver’s West End seems
to rise right out of the Strait of Georgia. A city of rich cultural
diversity where North America and Asia meet, Vancouver is
home to the second-largest Chinatown in North America. The
market area of Granville Island and spectacular Stanley Park
give Vancouver a relaxed cachet all of its own
Rail list
Part of SempleTravel 139-141 Kirkintilloch Road Bishopbriggs Glasgow G64 2LS Tel. 0141 762 5569