It had been 20 years since I'd spent any time in the Kootenays, and when my wife and I decided to spend a few days in Nelson recently, I had the bright idea of doing a permanent there that would take in some of the highlights. The Silver Triangle is basically the Kootenay 200 route with a few modifications, the most interesting of which was doing it in reverse. More on that later.

Unfortunately the weather socked in for the whole trip except the travel days, so the views of the mountains and lakes were largely hidden. It rained off and on for most of the ride but the winds were light. There are no flats on this route, and it has 2 substantial climbs. The roads were fair to good throughout, with a modest shoulder for most of it. Traffic was light.

Regarding the climbs, the reverse direction meant climbing the pass between Kaslo and New Denver from the east. All accounts indicated this side offered an easy 1-3% grade... what was less clear was that it's about 35 kms to the top -- even such slight grades catch up to you after climbing this long! The other climb was a more familiar 6-8% for 7kms leaving Silverton.

Despite the weather, it was a pleasant day in the saddle. I was in no rush and took time in some of the towns to do a sightseeing loop.

Slocan

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June 8, 2016